Sergio Perez believes Liam Lawson does not have the right attitude in Formula 1 due to the number of incidents he has been involved in, including their collision at the Mexico Grand Prix.
Lawson was trying to defend against Perez early in the race and was pushed wide at Turn 4, going to the inside of Turn 5 to try to fight back. The two drivers made light contact as the fight continued for two more corners before Lawson remained in the lead, with both drivers exchanging insults over the team radio and the RB F1 driver giving the finger. honor towards Perez when he passed him again later in the race.
"I have no relationship with him," said Perez, when asked about his understanding with Lawson within the Red Bull family.
“I think the way he came into Formula 1, I don't think he has the right attitude for it. He needs to be a little more humble, you know. When a double world champion (Alonso) told him things last weekend, he was completely unaware of it.”
“When you come to Formula 1 you are obviously very hungry and so on, but you have to be respectful off and on the track. I don't think he has the right attitude to show good pace, because I think that he's a great driver and I hope he can take a step back and learn from it.”
With the stewards investigating their collision but taking no further action, Perez says Lawson also didn't get the right message about his approach to the race.
“Everything was looking good. We were already 10th. I made a maneuver in turn 4, then he ended up off the track and shot straight, as if there was no car “I think he could have avoided the incident but he just came back behind. Luckily I saw him and left room, otherwise it would have been a huge accident.”
“It wasn't necessary; we damaged both of our races. I think it was just a bit too much, but I don't think it was his fault. He doesn't have a penalty either. He does the same with Fernando, with Franco at the end There's no penalty or it's not his fault either. He's racing with everyone at the moment to show off.
Colapinto was the driver who received a penalty for his collision with Lawson, with the stewards ruling that the Williams had not left room on the outside of Turn 2. However, Perez believes Red Bull needs to speak to Lawson about his piloting.
“I think you see these kids, obviously very hungry for excitement, and they're really passionate and it's great to see. They have great talent, but I'm only talking about Lawson in that regard. I think during his first two Grands Prix, he had too many incidents and I think there will be a time when it could cost him too much, like this weekend.
“He has to have the right attitude to say, 'I'm doing a little too much, I'm going to step back and start again.' That's all the learning you have to do as a young person, because if you don't learn not your mistakes, Formula 1 is a brutal world and he might not continue. It cost Red Bull Racing a lot of points, so I think they should talk to him.
Lawson apologizes for his middle finger
While passing Perez on the start/finish straight, Lawson was seen flashing his middle finger at the Mexican driver, an inappropriate gesture for which he has since apologized.
“I was obviously upset at the time, he blocked me for a half lap to try to ruin my race. But honestly, I shouldn't have done it, and I apologize because it's not not something we should do. It was in the moment, but that's no excuse.”
The opinions of the bosses at Red Bull
But when asked about the Lawson/Perez clash and whether Lawson should have given a senior team car an easier time, Christian Horner's answer wasn't exactly what Perez hoped.
“They are independent teams and as you can see they are racing hard. There was contact and Checo unfortunately took quite a bit of damage. But that's racing. We have seen a lot of tough battles .”
But Dr Helmut Marko thinks Lawson should still have been more careful.
“It's Lawson's fault. If it had been someone else (than Perez or Verstappen) it would have been acceptable, but we don't fight like crazy with the sister team. We have to stay within limits and be more careful. We will talk about it.
