“He Is Not Verstappen”: Marko Disciplinarian Kills Sergio Perez’s Red Bull Dream With Intense Drill Down

Sergio Perez had a roller-coaster season, to say the least. After a difficult start to the season, the Mexican driver mustered some form and won the Monaco GP. However, his form was short-lived as Max Verstappen ran clear with the title and he was left fighting with Charles Leclerc for P2. Red Bull and Perez would have loved to finish 1-2 in the WDC. However, the Mexican driver missed out on the slightest of margins.

His defeat to Charles Leclerc prompted Perez to come back stronger next season and rival Max Verstappen for the title. However, Helmut Marko’s recent comments must have acted like a dagger to his heart. The Austrian taskmaster revealed how the two teammates were different.

Helmut Marko compares what Checo lacks against his teammate Max

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko is known to have a reputation for being blunt and straight to the point. After securing their first WCC title in over 8 years, the Austrian compared his 2 drivers and stated what Perez missed against his teammate.

Helmut Marko explained to Auto Motor Sport how certain changes over the course of the season helped their drivers. He said, “The driving behavior has also changed in such a way that a Verstappen can make optimal use of it.” 

He further added, “And when the Max can push the limit and has the confidence, it’s different than when anyone else pushes the limit. Our car is where Perez is. And Perez is a very good Formula 1 driver, but he’s not a Verstappen.”

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Verstappen won the title with 4 races to spare. His dominant performances left everybody on the grid envious and awestruck. Moreover, even Perez agreed that beating Max Verstappen this season was almost impossible.

Sergio Perez explains the “great challenge” of being Max Verstappen’s teammate

When your teammate beats you by 149 points and clinches the title, it is never a great feeling. Checo explains the difficulties of being the Dutch Lion’s teammate. Moreover, he also acknowledged the fact that Verstappen was impossible to beat this season.

The Mexican driver explained why it was tough to beat Verstappen, despite driving the same car. “Well, it’s a great challenge to be his teammate,” Perez said, as reported by planetf1.com.

He further added, “Max is operating at a very high level from FP1 through the whole weekend so just had a little learning and trying to beat him and trying to do the stuff he is doing.”

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Checo will certainly hope to improve next season and challenge his teammate. Do you think Sergio Perez can beat Max Verstappen to win the title?