Struggling Sergio Perez spoke of a serious chance of winning the world title. But two races after his great victory in the streets of Baku at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, resistance already seems broken. Meanwhile, the Mexican's deficit to teammate Max Verstappen is 39 points.
Perez has himself entirely to blame, as in Monaco he hit the crash barrier early in qualifying. From 20th and last starting position, as well as a pit stop tombola, he never even came close to the points. Needless to say, Perez was extremely disappointed with that himself. After the race, the Mexican lamented that he could not afford such a zero score in Monte Carlo.
Brundle learned from Senna, Schumacher and Hakkinen
On several occasions, former drivers have argued that Perez will pose no threat to Verstappen on his way to his third world title. Martin Brundle, himself active in Formula 1 for many years and now an analyst for Sky Sports, is next in line. He, too, had seen in Monte Carlo how Perez's deficit in the title race has already increased to more than the number of points that can be earned with a win.
"What I learned when I was in direct competition with Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher and Mika Hakkinen and I simply couldn't match their raw speed and gifted talents was to maximise everything that was in my control such as car race set-up, starts, in laps, out laps, traffic management and so on," Brundle said in his column on the website of Sky. "Sergio would be better off making sure he finishes second and accepting the genius of Verstappen, and then maximise the days when he delivers his own special magic such as Singapore last year and Baku this season."
"What I learned when I was in direct competition with Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher and Mika Hakkinen and I simply couldn't match their raw speed and gifted talents was to maximise everything that was in my control such as car race set-up, starts, in laps, out laps, traffic management and so on," Brundle said in his column on the website of Sky. "Sergio would be better off making sure he finishes second and accepting the genius of Verstappen, and then maximise the days when he delivers his own special magic such as Singapore last year and Baku this season."
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After a long time, sensible article. Congratulations ?
Acceptance in this case is beneficial. Why? Normally a sportsman should never have this mindset, but in Checo's case it could help. It could eliminate mistakes. If you feel the pressure, always on the limit, fighting Max, you end up making more errors. If your approach is different, you can just relax and enjoy racing. You perform better. The trick is to not feel deflated by this. It's not easy, but it is doable. You try to stay hungry, motivated, win the races when the opportunity comes, and that's pretty much it. You have the chance to be with a great team, something that other drivers dream about. You have this opportunity, they don't. So just enjoy it.
Great article and a good piece of advice. With this car, Perez is expected to finish a minimum second in the championship. Yes, Singapore is the only circuit left where Perez might have a slight chance of win. But he will have to give a minimum of 100% to come anywhere near Max's time in Singapore. Its only a matter of time till Max is crowned 3 time world champion.
That raw speed and natural talent is evident in 5 drivers on the grid.
1.Max
2. Charles
3.George
4.Lando
5.Fernando
Id rate Fernando a place higher than that :) Its sad Charles doesnt have the equipment to put up a show like last year. Im hoping Ferrari brings better updates this weekend so that we can take #2 in the constructors (fight Mercedes and Martin). ATM, we are struggling at 4th position.
Forza Ferrari
The names are in no particular order, although I would put Max and Charles at 1 and 2. I agree about Fernando.
Yes, mate, Ferrari are just not getting it together. Some quick laps here and there in qualifying give us glimpses of what the car is capable of, but the race pace and tyre deg are still a major concern!
I disagree with this. Where was George's talent when Hamilton out qualified him? Where was George's talent when he lost a guaranteed podium by locking up and then colliding with Perez? Mistakes Hamilton didn't make. Hamilton is closing the gap on George in qualifying. Hamilton's race pace is still superior to George's, scoring the fastest lap on the hard. I have no bias or hate towards any driver, I just look at the numbers and what my eyes see, remaining intellectually honest as possible. I try not to let my emotions effect my judgement. I'd replace George with Lewis and Nando with Lando putting George 5. But all drivers have talent some more than others. I don't think it's that black and white as say the haves and have nots for example.
Good comment. I respect your opinion and in a way I agree when one looks at stats.
My view differs slightly as I equate raw talent and speed with drivers who are willing to push the absolute limit and due to that, will make the odd mistake. That comes from being on the edge. Like Charles in Miami and George trying to take Max in Baku.
Max's kissing the wall 3 times in sector 3 in Monaco. That's the raw speed I am referring to.
Lewis is Mr. Consistent and that's OK, but he will struggle to win unless he has a very fast car.
Ok fair enough but I think you conflate speed with aggression or risk taking. I don't think that's a talent or raw speed thing but a style/mindset thing. Raw speed or pace is how fast a driver can go over one lap and multiple laps like in a race. So with that said I think you favor a more aggressive style as compared to a more conservative style. I wouldn't think the more conservative driver has less talent or speed because they don't try and out drive the car like Leclerc who makes costly mistakes because he can't dial it back. I could say a more conservative driver like Hamilton has more talent because of his ability not to push it too far past the limit, always giving himself a chance to win instead putting all of his eggs in one basket. Styles can be different but they all can be effective.
Agree mate. Their are definitely two ways at looking at it. You are not wrong and yes, your description of "risk taking" is probably right, but that is what I like to see. There is a fine line between risk taking and raw speed though!
Brundle has a slave mentality !
"genius" is perhaps the wrong noun to use. Perhaps the author could have used 'talent' which is more appropriate.
Its understandable Checo felt a self belief after winning his 2nd race for the year that a WDC was a possibility regardless of the circumstances.
That belief had him pushing beyond the limits of his capabilities thanks to certain areas of media and social platforms which unfortunately resulted in a couple of costly errors and the realisation that the most he can aim for is a credible 2nd behind Max.
ha ha ha
It's a joke right?
Some good advice. More people would be better of also taking the same advice, like the Mexican and British media for example.
Agreed, good advice for Checo, however, the media is the media. The media doesn't drive an F1 car, they generate content that is designed to generate clicks and engagement. To think that they will somehow back off and suddenly start reporting with a patient critical perspective is unrealistic at best. All the more so with how this year is shaping up, they are desperate to latch onto any angle, no matter how far fetched, to make up for the ever emerging realization that the storyline for the WDC is becoming more set. They can only write so many stories about FA and AM, they need other storylines to latch onto.