Checo Pérez before the start of the Mexican Grand Prix this Sunday at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. José Méndez (EFE)
Checo Pérez needed a robot start. Get the throttle and clutch ready and look for the best way to climb from fifth place to the top three. In the beginning everything went well for him. The first five seconds were a dream as he paired with Leclerc and Verstappen. It seemed that the plan opened up the possibility of taking the lead on a circuit where overtaking is difficult. The Mexican wanted to go left, but he had no space. He became desperate, confused and crashed in the first corner. Early end. “I would try again, I only dream of winning at home,” he commented, overwhelmed after the race.
Mexicans fear the worst. His favorite driver, 33 years old, had the goal of taking second place in the drivers’ standings. He still had four races left in an irregular season, aboard the best car of the season. The Red Bull, tailored to Verstappen, has been unmanageable for Pérez since his accident at the Monaco Grand Prix. His irregularity raised doubts among the Austrian team about the end of the Mexican’s contract. The validity period is until the end of 2024. However, given the instability of Latin America, there are more and more candidates for his successor. At the start of the season it was Daniel Ricciardo. At the moment, the aspirants are planning like a shadow.
“I had a very good start. “I didn’t think Leclerc would brake so late and I didn’t expect him to be there,” commented the Mexican after the race. “I think if I had thought about the championship today, I wouldn’t have taken the risk. Today I only thought about winning in Mexico and when I had the opportunity I risked it, maybe too much,” he admitted to the media. As soon as the Mexican abandoned the race, frustration spread throughout the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Lots of silence. Verstappen, three-time champion, could only enjoy. Behind him was Hamilton, who begins to frustrate the Mexican’s efforts to take over the underpass. Leclerc, who survived the impact, ended up in third place.
The moment of collision between the cars of Leclerc and Checo Pérez this Sunday. Fernando Llano (AP)
“It was a racing accident. One of those things that happens. [Checo Pérez] He had a good start and had good momentum there before the first corner, but three in a row in the first corner doesn’t work,” said Red Bull director Christian Horner. “It was unfortunate and very disappointing to lose Checo in the first corner,” he noted. Pérez still has to fight for São Paulo, Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi. The Mexican’s biggest judge during his stay at Red Bull, Helmut Marko, expressed himself moderately: “It was a racing accident. He had to approach it from the position he started from. “He has to finish ahead of Hamilton to save his second place.” The difference between the two is only 20 points.
The Mexican holiday had a salty aftertaste this Sunday. The country was hoping to see its rider on the podium for the third consecutive year. “Today I left everything on the pitch, I saw the space and took risks. “It wasn’t Charles’ fault,” Pérez wrote. “It didn’t work out for me, but we gave everything we had to win. See you next year and we will try again,” he noted in a message on his social networks. The one from Jalisco has two wins (Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan), four second places (Bahrain, Miami, Belgium and Italy) and two third places (Austria and Hungary). The worst are his two resignations in Japan and now in Mexico City. He achieved his worst placing in Monaco with 16th place. In three races he has to do what has kept him in Formula 1 for 13 years: be reborn at the worst moment.
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