“Checo Isn’t an Idiot”: Toto Wolff Jumps to Sergio Perez’s Defense to Expose Red Bull’s Cheap Tactics

Ever since the Miami GP triumph of Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez has been nowhere near the pace of the Dutchman. For the first 4 races of the season, it actually looked like the Mexican would pose a threat to Verstappen’s 3rd title hopes. However, failing to qualify for Q3 multiple times combined with the subpar performances meant there was no longer a threat. Toto Wolff now exposes Red Bull’s cheap tactics as he jumps in to defend Checo. What did Wolff say?

Many have been left wondering as to the sudden gap that emerged between Checo and Verstappen. Toto Wolff is one of them. Sergio Perez qualified over 1.3 seconds slower compared to Verstappen at the Dutch GP. Red Bull has a dynamic of having a No.1 driver and building the car around his preferences. In this case, that’s Max Verstappen. With questions being raised about Checo’s performance, Toto Wolff came to the Mexican driver’s rescue.

As Wolff failed to understand the gap between the two Red Bull drivers, he advised how Checo falling behind is unusual. He then defended Perez by suggesting that Checo is a good driver and not an idiot. According to @formularacers_’s tweet, Toto Wolff said, “The difference with Perez is bizarre, and Checo isn’t an idiot. I cannot understand it.”

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Does this point toward a cheap Red Bull antic? Is Toto Wolff throwing a jab at Red Bull or just defending Perez? Nonetheless, even Charles Leclerc is puzzled by the situation between Verstappen and Checo. Let’s see what the Monegasque has to say.

The Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen situation impossible to read

Charles Leclerc was asked about Max Verstappen’s dominance and why he’s the driver up front with such dominance. Leclerc complimented Verstappen for being a great driver yet failed to understand the gap to Sergio Perez. He advised that it’s an impossible situation to read from outside and only the team would know exactly what’s going on.

According to it.motorsport.com, Charles Leclerc said, “Personally I think it is impossible to read the situation well from the outside, only within the team they know exactly everything. Sometimes the margin between Max and Checo was higher than I would have expected, but on the other hand Verstappen is an incredible driver and it is probably very difficult to be by his side. But, I repeat, I don’t have the full view of the situation.” [Translated Via Google]

What do you make of Toto Wolff’s attempt to defend Sergio Perez?

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