Ex world champion blames 'SUFFERING' Perez for fuelling Verstappen fire

Jacques Villeneuve has blamed Sergio Perez for Max Verstappen's domination of F1 in 2023.

The two-time world champion extended his championship lead to 81 points by completing a clean sweep of the Austrian Grand Prix weekend.

After four rounds of the season, though, Perez had won as many races as his Red Bull team-mate and vowed that he was in the title race.

Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, believes that moment is what fuelled Verstappen's unbeatable streak which has seen him win five races in a row.

READ MORE: Red Bull chief demands ANSWERS from Perez after clash with Verstappen

Mistakes are not an option

"Sergio began to drop in performance immediately after he had said. "Now I will fight to win the championship"," Villeneuve said to Gazzetta Dello Sport.

"In my opinion, that declaration gave Verstappen another boost. And he, on the other hand, began to suffer and make mistakes.

"I don't know. I know that every rider has to understand what his level is. And Sergio isn't at Max's level. Yes, he's capable of going as fast as him, but not over the whole season.

"If you say one thing like that, then you can't make mistakes like you did here in qualifying on Friday.”

READ MORE: Jos Verstappen: His life in F1 and how he drove Max to greatness

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