Sergio Perez makes honest admission after British GP disaster as Red Bull sack looms large
Sergio Perez experienced a disastrous qualifying session at the British Grand Prix, and it came at the worst time possible.
Sergio Perez admitted that he 'let the team down' during qualifying at the British Grand Prix. The Mexican beached his RB20 in the gravel in Q1 amid fresh speculation that he could be heading for a mid-season dismissal.
The Mexican headed into the weekend at Silverstone in the middle of a dismal run of form. With no finish higher than seventh in the past five races, speculation was already starting about his future at Red Bull.
This speculation was amplified when a report from Auto Motor und Sport revealed that Red Bull are weighing up a mid-season sacking with Daniel Ricciardo in line for a surprise promotion in the event that the reigning champions do lose patience with Checo.
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If there was ever a weekend that Perez needed a strong qualifying then this was it. Instead, with nine minutes left on the clock in Q1, he found the gravel, beaching his RB20 and bringing an end to his afternoon. He qualified 19th.
Explaining his woes, Perez told Sky Sports F1: "I got caught out with the conditions. I was trying to warm up the tyres into Turn Nine but as I downshifted, I locked up the rear tyre and it went off the track.
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"I ended up losing the car, going into the gravel and that was it. It hurts because to let your team down that way, it hurts a lot because I think the weekend was strong up to now. We were just not able to show the pace."
Perez now needs a remarkable recovery drive heading into a make-or-break Sunday. Ricciardo, however, has everything to gain, but his performances have also been called into question.
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Giving his thoughts on the rumours, Ricciardo said: “I would never make any predictions in this sport. I feel like every year that this sport goes on, the more it gets.
“I know it goes in the trend of the sport is getting bigger. It’s becoming more Hollywood, so to speak, in terms of the profile the sport has and also the narrative that runs with the sport now and certainly more Hollywood in terms of it’s so unpredictable."
