The Austrian Grand Prix is one of the shortest laps on the calendar and punishes even the smallest mistake.
During the first session of qualifying on Saturday, there was the smallest gap in the history of Formula 1 between first and last as Zhou Guanyu was just 0.798 seconds behind Max Verstappen.
That gap increased in Q2 and Q3 as Verstappen continued to creep towards the perfect lap in his unbeatable Red Bull and the rest of the field simply couldn’t keep up.
Speaking on Channel 4 after the session, David Coulthard had a lot of sympathy for one of Verstappen’s rivals.
McLaren have arguably an equally quick car compared to the Red Bull and Lando Norris will once again join Verstappen on the front row of the grid.
Oscar Piastri will feel he should be starting in third were it not for a marginal track limits decision that demoted him to 7.
Both Ferrari and Mercedes drivers couldn’t get anywhere near Verstappen and will be battling amongst themselves for the final podium position if Piastri can’t make his way past them.
However, the driver at the back of the top four teams once again was Sergio Perez, who had run out of new soft tyres by the time he reached Q3 as he had to use them all up to advance to the top ten shootout.
David Coulthard has suggested that Perez’s position at Red Bull is now a ‘nightmare’ given how well Verstappen is driving right now in comparison to the Mexican.
A Formula 1 driver’s most important battle is with their teammate and right now Perez is in a different category compared to the triple world champion.
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David Coulthard worried about Sergio Perez after another disappointing day
Speaking after a phenomenal qualifying performance from Verstappen compared to Perez, Coulthard said: “It’s a nightmare.
“I know that you’re lost for words, I feel for Checo [Perez].
“At various times, he’s been there as a really good wingman to Max [Verstappen], but since he was announced with a two-year extension, he’s not been at the races at all.
“Look, that is the worst case scenario for a driver to look at a one-second [gap to his teammate] around a track of this length, that’s scary.
“The most recent Constructors’ Championship they won with these two drivers, so why upset the apple cart?
“But right now, that apple cart’s looking like it’s got a wonky wheel.”
Host Gethin Jones described Perez’s position as the ‘worst seat in motorsport’ such is the pressure on the £215,000-a-week driver to perform.
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Sergio Perez continuing to fight to justify his new Red Bull contract
While it wasn’t a huge surprise that Sergio Perez signed a new contract with Red Bull beyond the end of this season, the timing did raise some eyebrows.
He started the campaign brilliantly, but just like last year his form began to dip after the Miami Grand Prix.
Perez hasn’t stood on the podium since the Sprint Race in Florida and his highest finish in that time is eighth.
Meanwhile, Verstappen has continued to show his superiority over the likes of McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes despite not always having the fastest car.
The gap between the two Red Bull drivers only seems to be increasing and Perez has to find a way to match Verstappen soon otherwise it’s going to become increasingly difficult for Christian Horner to justify his decision to retain him.
And knowing Helmut Marko, he won’t hold his tongue if he believes the Mexican isn’t doing a good enough job.
The post ‘Worst case scenario’: David Coulthard ‘lost for words’ at the ‘nightmare’ £215k-a-week driver is dealing with appeared first on F1 Oversteer.
