Verstappen shown ‘who he really is’ after refusal to follow team orders

Red Bull’s Sergio Perez has stated, over the team radio – at the end of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, that his teammate, Max Verstappen, has shown ‘who he really is.’

At the end of the Sao Paulo GP, Verstappen quickly became a hot topic as the two-time world champion refused to follow team orders as he tried to chase down Alpine’s Fernando Alonso in the closing stages.

As Perez struggled with pace on his medium tyres, in the dying stages of the race, the Mexican was ordered to allow Verstappen to pass on the quicker soft tyres. It was believed – from Perez’s side of the garage – Verstappen would relinquish the position if he failed to overtake Alonso.

When the chequered flag fell, Verstappen was ordered to give up his track position to Perez in a bid to help the Mexican secure P2 in the drivers standings.

After Verstappen refused to give up his track position, Perez took the chequered flag in P7. Over team radio, he said:

“Yeah, it shows who he really is.”

Despite the teams best efforts, Verstappen was reluctant to give up track position as he took the flag four seconds ahead of his teammate.

In response to his race engineer, Giampiero Lambiase who asked: ‘what happened?’ Verstappen said:

“I told you already last time, you don’t ask that again to me – ok? Are we clear about that?

“I gave my reasons and I stand by it.”

It’s rumoured that Verstappen’s decision to disobey team orders was in relation to Perez’s crash in qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix, earlier this year. However, no confirmation has been stated to indicate this was the case.

That’s it for the article; Verstappen shown ‘who he really is’ after refusal to follow team order!

What do you think, should Perez follow team orders next season after Verstappen’s reluctance to follow them? Let us know in the comments!

Read more Formula 1 here:

• Alonso given five-second penalty for contact with Ocon
• Pierre Gasly recieves warning for driving slowly in Brazil
• F1 Brazil GP: Russell secures Mercedes’ first win of season
• F1 Brazil GP: Ocon leads final practice ahead of Sprint
• F1 Brazil GP: Kevin Magnussen secures maiden pole

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Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.