Just like the 2021 season, we witnessed a tussle between Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez on Yas Marina. However, the tables were turned in the 2022 edition. This time, it was Perez fighting for a position in the driver’s championship and he lost out on the second spot at the Abu Dhabi GP. And this is because of Hamilton, according to the Red Bull advisor.

The tables were turned, and Hamilton possibly got his revenge, according to Helmut Marko. The Austrian believes it was because of his on-track feud with Hamilton that the Mexican could not catch Charles Leclerc. Leclerc finished the race ahead of Perez and denied Red Bull what could’ve been their first-ever 1-2 in the championship.

Speaking to Sky Germany, Dr. Marko said, “I think that Sergio pushed too hard with the media (medium) at the beginning and for this reason, we had to make his first stop earlier than expected. Of course, it was only when trying to overtake Hamilton when he lost time.” [Translated by Google]

“In case of having advanced without problems, it would have been enough to finish second in this race,” Marko acknowledged after the GP.

Read More: Sergio Perez Opens Up on Battling Lewis Hamilton To Help Red Bull Champion Max Verstappen’s Cause

The revenge is arguably not comparable, as Hamilton lost out on his eighth championship. Whereas Perez was fighting for the second spot. Regardless, the Mercedes man, even though did not finish the race, hampered Perez’s charge on Leclerc.

Apart from the nuisance created by Hamilton, it was Ferrari’s strategy with Leclerc that caught Red Bull off-guard as well.

Helmut Marko admits Ferrari’s strategy also played its part in Charles Leclerc clinching the second spot

Ferrari’s strategy surprised the Red Bull pit wall in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The world championship-winning team wasn’t expecting a one-stop race from Ferrari.

“We were surprised to see that Ferrari was able to reach the end with a single stop with Leclerc. It was a strategy that was not in our plans at the start of the race,” concluded Dr. Marko.

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Sergio Perez finally lost out on the second spot. After the events of the 2022 Brazilian GP, do you think Max Verstappen could have helped Checo on his bit to get P2 in the WDC at the final race of the season?