Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner has defended Sergio Perez following his costly spin at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix last Sunday.
The Mexican endured a difficult race, picking up a penalty for overtaking under a safety car, which dropped him out of the top three in the running order.
Following the mid-race restart, Perez, while running in fourth place, spun and dropped towards the rear of the field before crossing the line in 11th place.
Perez stated he was “very, very sorry” for the mistake, while Horner asserted that he was confident Perez would enjoy stronger races going forward.
“There were a lot of things going on in the race,” said Horner. “That was unfortunate. It was a shame because he had such a good Saturday but Sunday just didn’t go his way. I’m sure he’s going to have many stronger Sunday afternoons.”
Perez’s challenging race came one day after he secured his maiden front row spot in Formula 1, as he ended qualifying second alongside Lewis Hamilton.
While Horner conceded it was “frustrating” that Perez missed out on converting his high-starting position to a podium, the Briton knows that Perez is still finding his feet at Red Bull.
“I think he had a very good day [in qualifying], he was obviously frustrated to miss out on the pole,” Horner said.
“I think it’s just seat time, consecutive sets of tyres that he run in qualifying, it’s just time in the seat.
“He did a good job on Saturday. It was a messier race for him. Obviously the mistake behind the safety car early on, the 10-second penalty and then unfortunately the mistake behind the Ferraris at the restart.
“It was a shame because he could well have been on the podium as well. Frustrating not to have him up there but he’s certainly finding his pace, finding his feet. I’m sure he’s going to have much stronger weekends ahead.”
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