As we move into the final race weekend of the season, the Max Verstappen-Sergio Perez controversy is refusing to die down. The reigning world champion’s refusal to let his teammate pass and the radio message thereafter caused a major stir in the F1 community. Now former F1 driver and current Sky Sports commentator Martin Brundle has questioned Verstappen’s rationale behind the decision.

Sergio Perez has played nothing but an ultimate team game ever since his arrival at Red Bull. Had it not been for his major sacrifice in Abu Dhabi last year, Max Verstappen arguably may not have won his maiden world championship title. However, when it came to returning the favor, the two-time world champion refused to follow suit.

Martin Brundle blames Max Verstappen for a divide in the Red Bull camp

Red Bull strategists, upon realizing Sergio Perez could not overtake Charles Leclerc in the final stages of the Brazilian GP, asked Max Verstappen to overtake Fernando Alonso, and then Leclerc. However, they also ordered him to let his teammate pass in case he failed to overtake Alonso. Not only did the Dutchman fail to overtake the Spaniard, but he also defied team orders to let Checo pass.

From last weekend until now, the subject has been a major topic of discussion among F1 fans and media. Reacting to the incident, Martin Brundle told Sky Sports F1, “It was a very destructive thing to do. I don’t think it played well for him and it certainly hasn’t played well for the team.”

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“Now, of course, there are going to be a lot of questions asked to Sergio this weekend: ‘Did you intentionally crash in Monaco?’ That is a serious business.”

“It has just stirred up a bad smell. It is surprising anyone would want to do that.”

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While the refusal to let Perez pass was controversial enough, the team radio conversation following the chequered flag stirred the pot even further.

What did Max Verstappen say on the team radio?

After Max Verstappen crossed the finish line ahead of his teammate, his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase asked him why he did that. Verstappen replied, “I told you already last time, guys. Don’t ask that again to me, okay? Are we clear about that? I gave my reasons, and I stand by it.”

The radio back and forth made fans and media wonder if Verstappen was talking about this year’s qualifying in Monaco. Perez during Q3 crashed into the barriers, causing the session to be red-flagged. He resultantly finished ahead of his teammate in qualifying and eventually won the race. As per rumors, Perez crashed intentionally and Max took revenge for that in Brazil.

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Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez are tied for 290 points each in the drivers’ standings. Leclerc, however, leads the Mexican driver by having more race wins. Do you think Perez will finish ahead of the Monegasque on Sunday?