Sergio Pérez always has a valid excuse to justify his poor performances, which have become so regular that they are unfortunately hardly surprising.
The Mexican driver was the first top team driver to stumble on Friday during the Sprint qualifying session, from SQ1 during which a time in the top 15 was enough to compete in SQ2.
Alas, the Red Bull driver did not carry out the task successfully, signing a sixteenth time synonymous with a disappointing position on the starting grid, at a time when Red Bull sees McLaren (P1 and P3) and Ferrari (P4 and P5) arm yourself in the best possible way to fight for the world crown of manufacturers and the place of runner-up.
Without Pérez to come and participate in the mathematical effort essential to the general classification, Red Bull still knows its hopes rest on Max Verstappen, qualified sixth.
Pérez was seen in direct combat with the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc during SQ1, as the Mexican driver attempted to extricate himself from the red zone. Wheels against wheels with the Ferrari, he certainly lost time and blamed his failure on the behavior of the Monegasque.
The starting grid for the 2024 Qatar F1 GP Sprint race
“Unfortunately, we left a little late. We had a problem with one of the anti-roll bars”he comments to explain how he found himself having to sign a time in disaster in the final moments. “Then for my last lap we were all pulling gaps and then Charles came and yeah we were fighting in the first corner and so on. I lost a few tenths, enough to be eliminated. It's a shame, because I felt like we really improved with the car between P1 and qualifying. We still have a lot of potential. It’s a shame we ended up there…”
Pérez doesn't hide it, he expects a Sprint “very difficult”.
“For now we will focus on the rest of the weekend. In such a short race, I don't think there are many, many things we can do, but, yes, we will try…”
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