Sergio Perez, the ideal teammate, forces Leclerc into a mistake and enables Verstappen to be crowned at Suzuka
Sergio Perez crossed the finish line of the Japanese Grand Prix in third place but benefited from Leclerc's penalty to move up to the second step of the podium, thus giving Verstappen the title.
Max Verstappen would not have been crowned champion in Japan today without Sergio Perez’s indirect help. The Mexican driver put pressure on Charles Leclerc during the final laps, and it paid off as Leclerc made a mistake and received a penalty. By preventing Leclerc from finishing second, Perez enabled Max Verstappen to clinch the title.
Indeed, Verstappen needed more than just a victory here in Japan to be crowned champion. Charles Leclerc also had to not finish second. Sergio Perez thus played a significant role in his teammate’s title win. While he remains humble, he explains that the penalty received by Leclerc is nevertheless justified.
It was a tough fight. We fought hard several times, I tried an overtaking maneuver at the end and I saw that he locked his tires, he went off the track and I was on the outside but I think the battle was fair enough and in the end the penalty is justified.
By taking second place today, he also regains the position of runner-up in the World Championship for drivers. Perez now has 4 races left to maintain this position.
“He must maintain this pace until the end of the season,” he concluded with Johnny Herbert’s microphone in the interview zone.
The pivotal battle ⚔️#JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/Ry9KJryxDJ
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 9, 2022
