Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has confirmed Sergio Perez blew his chance of cementing the point for the fastest lap in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Perez suggested after winning the race at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit that an internal review was required of what transpired in the dying stages of the race.
Holding a comfortable margin to team-mate Max Verstappen, and with fastest-lap point in his pocket, Perez said he was instructed to hold his pace to the chequered flag.
In contrast, ahead of the final lap, Verstappen was afforded the opportunity to go for the crucial point. The Dutch driver duly accomplished the feat, allowing him to hold a one-point lead over Perez in the drivers’ standings.
With Verstappen also concerned about a suspected additional driveshaft issue, after the component broke during qualifying, Horner said: “Well, I think we came to the conclusion that you know what, it’s the last lap, if it’s going to go, it’s going to go.
“I think he (Verstappen) had already come to that conclusion himself.
“So both drivers had the info. Checo had the fastest lap at that point, and he asked what it was, and it was obvious why he was asking. He knew that Max was going to have a crack at it.
“But Checo gave it up after the first couple of turns. He was already a tenth and a half (of a second) down, and you saw him back out of it.”
When Perez’s remark about a review was pointed out to Horner, the Briton said: “The only issue about managing pace was when the issue with the driveshaft became prevalent.
“At that point, you’re thinking, ‘Okay, let’s turn down both cars’. But as soon as it became clear that we couldn’t see anything in the data, we released the cars again.”
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