Red Bull boss Christian Horner has claimed Sergio Perez’s one-lap troubles “have to change” despite a good recovery to seventh in Formula 1’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
Perez experienced another blow in his attempts to turn around his recent slump at the Hungaroring as he spun into the barrier in Q1 and qualified down in 16th place.
But while he lost two positions at the start, Perez ran an extended opening stint and then capitalised on an undercut later in the race to pip George Russell to seventh.
Horner, who branded Perez’s results as “unsustainable” at Silverstone, has commended the Mexican’s drive and ponders what he could’ve achieved higher up the grid.
“Checo’s race starting on the Hard, he dropped behind Russell, then as soon as he got a bit into clear air after that first pit stop, his pace is similar to the McLarens,” he said.
“So he’s actually driven a good race today.
“I think the strategy with Checo getting the undercut on George and pitting a bit earlier at that point actually worked really well for him today.
“So I think he had good pace. He made some good passes, and hopefully we’ll have taken a lot of confidence out of that.”
Perez came into the previous weekend with speculation swirling over his prospects with Red Bull amid a tumultuous run which had comprised 15 points in six races.
But with the six-time race victor having been defiant that he will regain his form, Horner hopes his climb through the field will be the morale-boosting result he needs.
“That was probably Checo’s strongest race since China I would say, so yeah he should take some confidence out of today’s race,” he added.
“If he’d have qualified more in position yesterday he’d have been in a much more competitive position.”
However, with Red Bull no longer boasting a substantial advantage over its rivals, Horner has accepted Perez being down the order is “something that has to change”.
Red Bull introduced a comprehensive upgrade package in Budapest, but it was not enough to see the team get back on level terms with McLaren as was anticipated.
Perez not being in contention at the sharp end, Max Verstappen’s eventful run to fifth and a McLaren 1-2 means Red Bull’s gap in the standings reduced to 51 points.
Horner has insisted that the reigning F1 champions are under no illusion about the threat being posed to its title, placing an increased emphasis on Perez to step up.
“We’re just going to develop the fastest car we can, that’s what we’ll continue to do,” he explained.
“The Drivers’ Championship, obviously Max has a good lead but that can diminish very quickly, so nothing can be taken for granted.
“The Constructors, 59 points or whatever it currently is can diminish very quickly.
“So we’re acutely aware of that and determined to make sure that we start having bigger points-scoring weekends.”
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