Sergio Perez fell far back in the Austrian Grand Prix last weekend when he was allegedly pushed off the track by Lando Norris. At least that was the lecture of the race management and so the McLaren driver was given a penalty. But should Perez have been there at all? Formula 1 journalist Ruud Dimmers thinks not.
“He did try there in turn four, but a hundred thousand others had not succeeded there before. Last year with Albon was the same story. We have already seen so many people go through the gravel there. Why are you trying there? He throws “A lot of points for Red Bull there. He gave a lot of points to Mercedes with a stupid mistake. Then it is Norris who is penalized, which I think is really scandalous. Let this be racing.”
In any case, Dimmers was not impressed by Max Verstappen’s teammate: “He was nowhere in the rest of the race. He was overtaken twice by Charles Lerclerc in that limping Ferrari. Twice!”
Interlocutor Tom Coronel understands that sentiment well, but the racing driver indicates that he understands the penalty: “I understand why Norris is penalized. Racing is racing, I agree and as a rooster I probably would have kicked him out too, but that’s not the point.”
“If someone is one hundred percent wrong and you don’t give them space, you actually just put someone next to the track,” Coronel continues, and then compares this situation with the skirmishes between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton at Imola.
“Then you can say ‘on Imola you thought it was good that Max threw it in’, but I also thought that action was risky. But what matters is that you have respect for those you are fighting with at that moment. Lewis and Max seem to have that chemistry at such a moment, but Perez, Norris and Leclerc were too ‘cocky’ for that.”
Coronel can only wholeheartedly agree with Dimmers’ suggestion that Verstappen would have done exactly the same as Norris: “Of course! But he would also have received that punishment.”
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