Sergio Perez says he has the support of the FIA’s Charlie Whiting over the incident between him and Kimi Raikkonen in Monaco a fortnight ago.
The McLaren driver retired with damage after he came together with Raikkonen at the chicane – it also led to the Lotus man pitting after sustaining a puncture.
That led to the Finn saying Perez needs to be “punched in the face” to teach him a lesson. The Mexican driver, who insists he wasn’t at fault, revealed that he spoke to Whiting after the race and he sided with Perez on the matter.
“I talked with Charlie straight after the race, so for me it was clear. Kimi knew I was there, he did two moves under braking and he [Whiting] agreed that it was Kimi’s fault,” he explained.
“The stewards also thought it was a racing incident.”
Neither driver was penalised for the incident.
Perez does admit his driving style is a little ‘aggressive’, but he sees no reason to change that and he has the full support of the McLaren team.
“Of course at the end of the day you know which drivers you can do risky moves with, and to overtake in Monaco is quite risky,” he added.
“Once you are committed to a move, there is no way to go back, especially in Monaco. Once you do the move, you have to trust the guy in front to give you room. I had it with Jenson [Button] for example or Fernando [Alonso] with me, and it is something Kimi didn’t do.
“Right now I today feel Kimi didn’t give me any room and, if you speak to Charlie Whiting, he has the same view on that.”