Amid RB’s Lando Norris Pull, Sergio Perez’s Depressing Stat Gives Legitimacy to Helmut Marko’s Fear

2 Red Bull drivers – the first destined to break records while the second destined to break under the first’s pressure. Both, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez are nailing their roles. After yet another poles-apart result for Red Bull at the Dutch GP, Perez’s seat is in grave danger. Another factor that is worsening his performance is the much-spoken-about possibility of Lando Norris replacing him. Looks like Helmut Marko is about to live his nightmare with his eyes wide open.

A few weeks ago, McLaren ace Norris was being considered for Perez’s seat at Red Bull. But Marko wasn’t quite sure of this move, which looked very good on paper. A world champion and a potential world champion in the fastest car. What could go wrong? Very close competition and a possible unhealthy rivalry are what could be formed, felt the Austrian. As a result, he rubbished the move. But he might have to finally consider it after a rather unflattering statistic being formed by Perez’s miseries.

Statistics are an interesting aspect of any sport. They make us dive deeper into the performance analysis and simplify the intricacies. The Dutch GP qualifying was very thrilling. But only for the viewers and the drivers that fared well. For Sergio Perez, it was very tough. Verstappen not only secured pole at Zandvoort but also was 1.3 seconds quicker than Perez. And Norris pipped the Guadalajara-born racer by 0.7 seconds. Shambles, really. But more than just yesterday’s performance, it was the cumulative of the 2023 season’s numbers that showed the gloomy picture.

Despite being in the RB19, the quickest car in all aspects, Perez has been out-qualified by the Williams of Alex Albon 6 times in 13 qualifying sessions this year. That is nearly 50% of the times, Perez has been beaten by the man he replaced at RB for underperformance. Lando Norris has been even better than Albon, outqualifying Perez 8 out of 13 times – 61% of the time!

Read More: Lando Norris Throws in the Towel as Max Verstappen’s Robotic Dominace Exposes McLaren’s Achilles’ Heel

Some very tough decisions await Helmut Marko. Because now their intra-team problems are leading to even rivals criticizing them for such varied performances.

Mercedes Boss Toto Wolff baffled by Sergio Perez’s big deficit to Max Verstappen

Sergio Perez has been so consistently slower than Max Verstappen that even Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is getting concerned now. 1.3 seconds is a big difference to have in a car that has been termed identical by the management of the Milton-Keynes outfit.

“Odd, bizarre. Checo [Perez] is not an idiot,” Wolff exclaimed when he was asked about the contrasting performances by the RB drivers. “We have seen it over these years, Checo is a grand prix winner and multiple grand prix winner. But 1.3 seconds, I haven’t heard any obvious explanations. But yeah, odd.”

Can Perez rout through his rivals in the race like he has done before? If he doesn’t, will Red Bull continue with Perez’s services for the 2024 season or is this the end of the road for him?

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