Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko has criticised Sergio Perez for his overtake attempt on George Russell on the opening lap of the Austrian Grand Prix.
Perez and Russell made contact as they went side-by-side, with Perez pitched into the gravel after being spun around.
The Mexican driver subsequently retired from the race after the side of his car sustained heavy damage in the collision.
Russell was deemed at fault for the incident, with the Stewards handing the Mercedes driver a five-second time penalty as well as two penalty points on his Superlicence.
Although Russell was penalised, Marko says that Red Bull informed Perez not to attempt an overtake around the outside at Turn 4.
“We said before the start, do not go around the outside in that corner,” Marko told Sky Sport Germany. “That is not possible.
“This was just unnecessary. We’ve seen that before. It doesn’t work. After that, the car was damaged and it made no sense to continue driving.
“There was a lot of damage to the floor. He might have finished two laps behind, so it didn’t make sense [to continue]. It was better to save the mileage.”
The crash was almost a carbon copy of the clash that ex-Red Bull driver Alexander Albon had with Lewis Hamilton two years ago, which cost the Thai-British driver a shot at a race win.
Perez also found himself in the gravel at the same corner last year during a battle with McLaren’s Lando Norris.
“I don’t think Mercedes like it when our cars go around the outside in Turn 4,” Marko added. “It was a shame, because you saw that Checo was ahead.
“It’s almost a perfect imitation of the incident with Lewis and Albon a few years ago. It’s a shame we didn’t get more space there.”
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