Although Sergio Pérez started the race ahead of Leclerc, the Monegasque got ahead thanks to a better strategy.
Charles Leclerc went to one stop, Pérez to two. The Red Bull driver gradually overtook Leclerc, but they were separated by 1.3 seconds at the end of the race.
After Brazil, the team has promised that, if possible, Verstappen will help Pérez fight for second place. It was also confirmed by Verstappen himself. In the second half of the race he only had one option: to try and slow down Leclerc. Verstappen said he wasn’t asked to do it by the team.
“It’s quite a difficult question. You don’t want to end up in…sure, you can block it, but is it a fair ride? I think it’s not the best way to end the season,” said Verstappen.
Pereze strategy to Leclerca. Photo: Pirelli
Verstappen admitted seeing Pérez’s actions on screens around the track.
“It looked like Checo was catching up fast enough to try to overtake, but then he lost quite a bit of time in the chaos between Pierre and Alex. He wasted enough time there, I watched it on the screens.’
Verstappen believes Pérez’s best chance for second place would be if he pushes harder in the second stint. However, Red Bull felt at the time that the tires needed gentler treatment.
“The degradation of the medium compound was quite large. Looking back, I think he could have been pushed more in the second stint. But it’s always easy to tell in retrospect. At that point we thought we should be a little more careful with the tires We’ve had a lot of great weekends, but even on great weekends there’s always something to learn.”
