Horner “has work cut out” managing Verstappen and Perez rivalry

22 March 2023 , 17:15

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Red Bull chief Christian Horner has been sent a warning (Image: AP)

Red Bull chief Christian Horner has been warned he is "going to have his work cut out" managing Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez this season following the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

On paper, things could not have gone much better for Red Bull so far, with the team securing back-to-back one-two finishes in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. However, Verstappen and Perez appeared to clash in Jeddah and Sky Sports presenter and pundit Natalie Pinkham believes it is a sign of things to come.

Verstappen declared he was "not happy" finishing second behind his teammate, despite recovering from a driveshaft failure in qualifying which meant he started the race in 15th. He also managed to hold onto his championship lead by securing the fastest lap of the race.

Perez, meanwhile, deleted a tweet after his win where he spoke of his desire to beat Verstappen to the title. He wrote: "It was tougher than I thought, but in the end I'm happy to get my fifth victory in F1. Very happy with the result of the team. We are going to keep pushing very hard. I want to be champion."

After his initial tweet was deleted, it was reposted without the final line. And Pinkham believes there will be more issues between Verstappen and Perez as the season continues

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"He [Verstappen] said it through gritted teeth that he was delighted to have secured P2, that what he was aiming for, but the dominance with which he did that had he not been starting P15, and perhaps slightly unnerved by those driveshaft issues, he could have won the race," she said on the Sky Sports F1 Podcast.

"But, I just do predict that Christian is going to have his work cut out to manage those two this year." And fellow Sky Sports broadcaster David Croft agrees with Pinkham's assessment, stating that he expects "a few banana skins down the road" for Red Bull due to "friction" between Verstappen and Perez.

Sergio Perez got the better of Max Verstappen in Jeddah (HOCH ZWEI/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

"I am not sure everything is how Christian Horner would like it and how the team would like it for a smooth domination," Croft said. "They are dominating Formula 1 on the track but they came very close to not having that one-two in Bahrain and had issues [in the race in Saudi Arabia].

"In the cooldown room after the race, there was still friction between the two drivers. Checo [Perez] was not a happy man at being asked to do target lap times that were slower than his team-mate.

"Perez is in the last year of his contract and if there are no signs of another deal coming, what's in it for Sergio to help his team-mate in the way Red Bull would like? I think there are a few banana skins down the road."

Matthew Cooper