“If you no longer go for a gap that exists, you’re no longer a racing driver.” Something about Ayrton Senna’s words rang true with Sergio Perez at the Mexican GP. White it’s increasingly looking like Perez may not be a Red Bull Racing driver for much longer, he’s still a Formula 1 driver. The Mexican GP was his home race. The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriquez was nothing but a congregation of Perez’s fan club. Of course, he wanted to do well in from of them. So when he got a whiff of the race lead, he took it and it didn’t pay off. Turns out, Max Verstappen had a role to play in the Mexican’s premature ending.

It’s not like Max Verstappen hasn’t given Sergio Perez reasons to be furious with him before. Remember the 2022 Brazilian GP when Verstappen failed to follow team orders, even though he had nothing to benefit from it? Not to mention that Perez had a lot to lose. But of all the times Perez hasn’t been a fan of Verstappen, the Mexican GP would probably top that list.

Max Verstappen put Sergio Perez in a tight situation at the Mexican GP

After what felt like a long time, Sergio Perez finally looked like he was regaining his lost form. The Mexican looked pretty strong throughout the weekend, and that form continued into qualifying. He qualified within two-tenths of Verstappen after an eternity. He didn’t get to celebrate it too much because a certain Daniel Ricciardo out-qualified him in an AlphaTauri. But Perez put that in his rearview mirror, and he did the same on Sunday off the line.

With a mega start to rival Verstappen’s, the two Red Bulls were flanking either side of pole-sitter Charles Leclerc going into Turn 1—with Verstappen on the inside. Perez, on the outside, saw an opportunity–albeit a risky one—to take the lead, took it, and crashed into Leclerc, taking himself out of the race. It went from elation to heartbreak for Perez and his fans in a matter of seconds. Discussing this on the F1 Nation Podcast, Mercedes development driver Esteban Gutierrez said, “It’s a pity for Perez and a pity for Mexico.”

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As reported by Sports Illustrated, Gutierrez put some of the blame on Verstappen. He said, “There was a bit of bad luck. An unlucky position there as well because Max moved a bit to the left and then squeezed Charles. Then, of course, Charles had nowhere to go. So, if you think about it, yes, it was probably a bit too aggressive. But yeah, it’s just a shame.” Verstappen obviously wanted the best line into Turn 1. But his move led to a chain of events that ended in short-term (and likely long-term) disaster for Perez.

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Verstappen’s move ended with Perez as collateral damage 

This is what happened at Turn 1: Verstappen moved a little to the left for the best line into Turn 1. Leclerc reacted and moved a little to the left himself. To have the upper hand going into Turn 2, the Monegasque attempted a late-braking move. He obviously didn’t see Perez on the outside, who didn’t anticipate Leclerc’s late braking and turned in. After he retired from the race, Perez told the media, “I took a risk. I paid a high price for it, but I was also honestly not expecting Charles to brake that late.” 

That was the short-term damage. The long-term? His seat at Red Bull. Although his contract runs till the end of 2024, Daniel Ricciardo is becoming an increasing threat, especially after his Mexico exploits. Out-qualifying Perez in an AlphaTauri, and then driving a near-perfect race to achieve AlphaTauri’s best result of the season with a P7? This put yet another feather on Ricciardo’s cap, and yet another nail in Perez’s Red Bull career coffin.

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Do you think Sergio Perez could retain his seat alongside Max Verstappen in 2024?