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<\/p>\nSergio Perez has claimed his dip in performance was a diversion from Christian Horner’s scandal.<\/p>\n
“I was a big distraction. Nobody was talking about anything but me, about my performance, about how badly I was doing.”- Sergio Perez.<\/p>\n
Photo: Red Bull content pool<\/p>\n
At the start of the 2024 F1 season allegations of improper behaviour were made against Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, a matter which Horner always denied, and Perez claims his lack of results diverted the attention from. <\/p>\n
“There was also so much pressure that year. Christian had some problems, so it [the performance] was also a bit of a distraction,” Perez said when he appeared on the CRACKS Podcast. <\/p>\n
“I was a big distraction. Nobody was talking about anything but me, about my performance, about how badly I was doing.”<\/p>\n
Perez: ‘I always knew I wasn’t the problem’<\/p>\n
Perez claims attempts were made – without clarifying by whom – to try and make him think he was the culprit for his streak of poor results. “Yes, yes, many times [they tried to make me think I was behind the lacklustre performance], but I always knew it wasn’t me.”<\/p>\n
The Mexican states he never doubted himself. And that his feedback on the car was proven right when teammate Max Verstappen backed the Mexican’s concerns.<\/p>\n
“Never [doubted myself], never, because I remember in one race, at Spa, they were about to cancel my contract, right? It’s mid-year. They didn’t cancel it. I was already complaining a lot about the car.<\/p>\n
![\"perez-abu-dhabi-gp\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/perez-abu-dhabi-gp-68c978c36d4d3.jpg@webp.webp\")
<\/p>\n
Photo: Race Pictures<\/p>\n
“We went back to Zandvoort and Max started complaining about the same things I was. I mean, Max is the driver who can best cope with the car’s rear. He has a driving style where he doesn’t feel the rear end. <\/p>\n
“So, when Max complains about that, it means it’s terrible. And in Italy he says, ‘I can’t drive this car anymore.’ Finally, finally they’re going to listen to us.”<\/p>\n
When Red Bull listened, Perez ‘was a second faster’<\/p>\n
Perez reveals that following Verstappen’s echo of his previously voiced concerns the team made changes, which were ultimately void following a costly crash with Carlos Sainz in Baku. <\/p>\n
“At the next race, the team modified the floor,” Perez added. “They put in a new floor for me, with the modifications Max requested. I was a second faster than everyone in practice when they gave me that floor in Baku.<\/p>\n
“I was doing really well, everything was going great. I was fighting for the win, I was going to win that race, and that’s when I crashed with Sainz, wrecked the car on the last lap, and I never drove on that floor again,” the Mexican driver concluded.<\/p>\n