After crashing out of the Mexican Grand Prix at Turn 1, Sergio Perez declared he would take the same risks again.
At the beginning of the Mexican Grand Prix, the home favorite was eliminated in a matter of seconds after taking a bold chance on a daring overtaking maneuver at the first corner. Launching himself into the lead on the run to the first turn, Perez outran Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen in the braking zone after vaulting off the starting grid in fifth place.
However, Perez swept in too aggressively and made contact with the Ferrari driver, resulting in Perez being launched into the air and spun off into the escape area. While he recovered to the pits, the damage to the RB19 was too severe to continue.
Sergio Perez: I go home very sad
Perez’s early bath meant that, after spending the entire week anticipating the adulation of his home crowd, he looked dejected when he spoke to the media after the race.
When asked if that was the saddest race of his career—given that he was a real contender to win—Perez acknowledged that it was.
“It’s certainly pretty high up there,” he said.
“Throughout my career, I’ve experienced some really depressing times, but this race has undoubtedly been the saddest because of the outcome.
“But in the end, this is just racing, and I’m proud of my team and myself, but I also go home feeling very sad.”
“We gave it everything we had; I really wanted to win because I knew that a podium today would not be enough for me. After spotting the opening, I grabbed it.
Explaining the incident from his perspective, Perez said he was taken aback by how courageous Charles Leclerc had been when he was wedged between the two Red Bulls and applied the brakes.
He said, “I was ahead of Charles, so I wasn’t expecting him to brake that late.”
Since he was in the middle, there is much less space for maneuvers.
At those speeds, it’s simply too late to enter the braking zone. However, it won’t go well to have three cars enter Turn 1 with these wide cars. However, I chose to take a chance, and I paid for it.
Sergio Perez: I’d take the risk all over again
The Mexican confirmed he couldn’t have continued the race in any shape or form, saying: “The damage was quite big on the rear suspension.”
Now faced with just a 20-point lead over Lewis Hamilton in the Drivers’ Championship as they vie for second place overall, Perez said he won’t find it difficult to move on mentally from his disappointment.
“It’s not difficult at all, because it’s a weekend where I risked it all to go for the win – the pace was there,” he said.
“But it just didn’t happen and this is just how racing is, I’ve been here long enough to understand that and you have days like this.
“But what makes me feel proud is that I gave it all and that’s it.”
Perez remained defiant as he said he wouldn’t change anything about his approach to the first corner if he had the opportunity to redo it over and whether he felt he’d let his fans down.
“To be honest, I think that if I hadn’t gone for it, I would have disappointed them more,” he remarked.
“I chose to take a chance and I went for the gap. I ultimately paid the price because I knew it would be extremely risky. Risk/reward: Taking that chance was quite high. However, it was worthwhile. I would accept it once more.
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