Having grudgingly obeyed the order to yield to his teammate at Barcelona, Sergio Perez calls for talks with his team.

In a rollercoaster Spanish Grand Prix, that, among other things saw Charles Leclerc retire whilst heading to certain victory, Sergio Perez found himself leading the race and heading for his first win of the season.

Previously, the Mexican had called on his team to be allowed to pass Max Verstappen and attack race leader George Russell on his fresher tyres. Approval was given and he duly passed the Mercedes before pitting six laps later, handing the lead to his Dutch teammate.

Regaining the lead on lap 44 when Verstappen pitted, just four laps later Perez was told: "You're on a different strategy to Max, if he's quicker let him through."

"That's very unfair," replied the Mexican, "but OK."

Perez duly yielded to his teammate, before pitting five laps later for the soft tyres that would allow him to claim the fastest lap of the race.

After crossing the line, 13s down on his teammate, Perez' radio call was none too subtle.

"I'm happy for the team," he said, "but we need to speak later."

In the aftermath of the race, having had time to calm down, Perez opted for the diplomatic approach.

"I think it was close," he said. "But at the end it is a great team result... I'm happy for that."

Asked about his radio calls, he replied: "We were on different tyre strategies at the time. I let Max by in the beginning, then I thought at the time I could go by and not lose crucial seconds to make my strategy work. But anyway, it's a good team result," he insisted.

"Our responsibility is to bring the two cars home with as many points as we can," explained team boss, Christian Horner, "and of course what Checo couldn't see at the time, which he could see perfectly well now, is that he had such a long stint to do on the medium tyre.

"Max had such a tyre advantage from a team perspective there is just no point in taking that risk with an intermittent DRS, with temperatures raging up and down. So it was absolutely the right thing to do," he insisted.

"We will discuss it and he will see the race plot, and he will see that he had close to 30 laps to do on the tyres, which in the end we needed to pit to make sure we covered Russell.

"In the heat of the moment you can understand it," he admitted. "If he wasn't pushing those types of things he isn't doing his job."

Check out our Sunday gallery from Barcelona, here.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by kenji, 27/05/2022 5:08

"@ Spindoctor...I don't have a problem, I have an opinion. Rightly or wrongly. Obviously you have a problem and it's 'comprehension' or so it seems."

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2. Posted by kenji, 26/05/2022 12:40

"@ Ed...you're being selective.IMO it matters zip as to how a driver gets to be running first in a race..whether it is by way of unforeseen circumstances, driver errors,safety cars/differing strategies or just plain good driving. Once that driver hits the front it is basically wrong for the team to simply tell him to back off in favour of their chosen no.1. Yes, there is a team dilemma, however it seems as though merit is out of favour. If you haven't already read Webber's book 'Aussie Grit' then I would suggest that you do and then you will see just what the 'toxic 'twins' did to him. There are many examples I could quote but I won't bother. The subject has lost it's lustre....until the next time."

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3. Posted by Spindoctor, 26/05/2022 9:29

"@kenji - not altogether clear what your problem is.
There are no analogies to the way Teams direct their drivers in F1 and complaints about betting are irrelevant. If I were to bet on a driver winning a race, I'd be fully cognisant that he was part of a Team and that he would follow the orders of the Team - up to & including "fixing" the result by allowing his team mate to win. There's risk involved in any wager and Team Orders are part of the risk of betting in F1.

On a more general note we all (F1 fans) know that there are Team Orders & that these will be used to achieve the results desired by the Teams. Where you may have a point is in the case of "satellite" Teams, where Team A's 2nd Team deliberately blocks or "takes out" Team X's cars or drivers. The current reliance on DRS for overtaking provides ample opportunity for this tactic to be used. By holding within DRS range of a slower car without overtaking it is relatively easy to prevent a following car from overtaking...."

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4. Posted by Editor, 26/05/2022 6:43

"How does Perez get to demonstrate his winning ability CONSISTENTLY...

Well, one idea might be to improve his single-lap pace and out-qualify his teammate more often.

OK, he took pole at Jeddah, but thus far this season Max has out-qualified him 5-1, while last year it was 17-5.

Were Sergio to out-qualify his teammate a little more often and then manage to get off the line and head off into the distance, even Christian and Helmut - the Toxic Twins - might find it hard to deal with the resultant backlash should they go down the team orders route."

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5. Posted by kenji, 26/05/2022 0:35

"@ Spindoctor...Yes, I'm fully cognisant of the 'team' element. That's the problem with running two championships in tandem when they foster alternative strategies. I can give you two examples of these anti competitive outcomes. Vettel and Webber are a prime example and when Horner tried to implement the agreed strategy Vettel totally ignored him!...and got away with it. In fact, according to Webber, when Horner intimated that there could be some internal sanctions Vettel threatened the team with legal action! Another example was 2016 when during the last race Hamilton received no penalty for attempting to back Rosberg into the clutches of Ferrari...the arch enemy. He received no sanction internally and was allowed by the team to win the race. IMO there won't be any wind back of the 'team orders' being allowed but that's not to say that the current situation is fair and equitable. WEC handles it a whole lot better. Monaco being Monaco [with bigger and heavier cars] may just see teams attempting to reintroduce the Wolff/Szafnauer/Ocon performance of the past! Let's hope not.
"

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6. Posted by kenji, 26/05/2022 0:13

"@ Pavlo....you have failed to answer the question I posed? How does Perez get to demonstrate his winning ability CONSISTENTLY if he is never allowed ,by the team, to win when he's out in front? I just happen to think that Verstappen is faster than Perez but we'll never know unless Perez is treated fairly and gven the opportunity when it arises. Each and every driver arrives at a race with the sincere hope that, despite the odds, that they can win a race, otherwise why compete? That's forgetting the remuneration package that they get for the moment. Obviously Perez felt aggrieved at the Red Bull decision in Barca...now why was that?"

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7. Posted by Spindoctor, 25/05/2022 19:47

"There's a clue in the word "Team". Unlike Federer or Murray, Max, Checko and Lewis don't enter or compete as individuals, but as part of a Team. Mercedes RBR etc finance the development & cost of racing the cars and enter the Drivers as part of their Team. They are racing for the Team Championship. The Drivers' Championship is a bonus for them."

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8. Posted by Pavlo, 25/05/2022 13:30

"@kenji - of course Checo shouldn't break team orders, but he doesn't need to. His race in Spain was very much obviously on the level with Max, and would secure him equal or first role in a team ONLY IF he would do this consistently EVERY weekend. Of course, it's also the right timing - one needs to impress bosses before the season starts.
In reality last year Checo was clearly behind Max and Lewis, this year he is clearly behind Max and (most importantly) Charles. With all honesty you have to admit, that on the course of the championship Max has way higher chances to challenge Ferrari that Checo. And this season has very high chances to be very close. So here the situation is very obvious.
Regarding moral - F1 is a team sport, where team earns money based on the result. And clearly sponsor money depend on Drivers title. That's why any ban on team orders encourages dirty play to some degree, and openly allowing it makes all clear and predictable for everyone.
Checo very clearly knew what contract he is signing, and what challenges he would have."

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9. Posted by kenji, 25/05/2022 11:26

"@ Pavlo...Your analogy is misplaced. Obviously a goal keeper never scores goals because that's not his role and he's at the wrong end of the pitch!!! How does Perez get to demonstrate that he's consistently better than Verstappen as when he in front or attacking from behind he is effectively nobbled by the team. Yes, he can ignore team orders but that's booking a one way ticket to join the dole queue. IMO the entire 'team orders' agreement should be eliminated. Let them race and if they're caught imposing team orders then they should be disqualified. All comms in plain English as well. A couple of DQ's would soon shake the serial miscreants out."

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10. Posted by Pavlo, 25/05/2022 7:56

"@kenji - I call it “team strategy and roles”. No matter how good you play as goalkeeper, you will not be given a chance to score goals. You first need to prove you are a good striker.
Same here - until Checo proves he is consistently better than Max and can win a championship for the team he will play wingman. Yes it’s “devastating”, but it’s sport, you need to earn your chances."

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11. Posted by kenji, 24/05/2022 23:34

"@ Pavlo...so if it's not 'race fixing' what is it? 'Result adjustment' , 'Contractual performance fulfillment', 'Favoured driver consideration' or 'Coercive contract extension negotiations'. Take your pick of what is euphemistically agreeable to you. The end result is the same. How devastating it must be to be told that no matter how hard you drive if you are in front and the 'favoured one' is behind you that there is no way that they'll let you win! That's humilitating to both drivers. "

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12. Posted by Pavlo, 24/05/2022 9:28

"@Defiant - I can well imagine and would be mega happy being in a position of Checo. He knows well, RedBull is a top team that puts everything into getting Nr.1 painted on a car, that secures sponsor money that allows to build winning car again. Where Checo can be on podium and eventually win. Force India gave him more “fair” conditions but the result…
Checo obviously either proves to better than Max (from race 1, consistently, every race) or plays wingman.
Of course, athletes on that level must always push for the top, but reality is, “first driver” roles are well defined for this year already in RB and Ferrari."

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13. Posted by Pavlo, 24/05/2022 5:12

"In football I can also place a bet on specific player scoring the next goal, but obviously there are “team orders”. I am not aware if horse race is multi-event championship and whether the battle between jockeys compromises result for both. In F1 both definitely true, so team orders are no surprise.
And no, it’s not “race fixing”, as this term can only apply to illegal action. Any legal action is impacting the result in any sport, but is not “fixing”, just part of the game. And if you place a bet it’s you who should think of all the possible legal options."

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14. Posted by Defiant, 24/05/2022 5:11

"I'm with Kenji on this one. I hate it. I agree that its blatant race fixing. However, I do understand team orders being desirable in certain circumstances but this early in a season is unforgivable in my humble opinion.

This is one of my main gripes with the reds and in the years following Seb's stint at RB them too. Its a shame for F1 and especially its fans, but can you imagine being in the position of Rubens, Filepe, Webber, Irvine and now Checco, just to name a few."

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15. Posted by kenji, 24/05/2022 0:56

"@ ian_w....I think you are being a tad obtuse here. My analogy is correct insofar as altering a race result by blatantly ordering one driver to change track position thus enabling the other team driver to win is simply 'race fixing'. This activity is considered a criminal offence in many jurisdictions. My point re 'stables/trainer is equally correct as when major races are held the horse/jockey/trainer all form part of the backgroiund pattern that punters use to inform their betting choices. Like you, I am not a betting man either but would I bet on an individual driver? Never, owing to this very problem. The main problem is that F1 choose to run two championships which are, in some respects, contrary to free and outright competitive racing. IMO there should be simply one WC. Winning this could be treated like WEC where the team wins and all drivers share equally and receive a WC trophy. Surely in this 'woke' world individual driver discrimination should be eliminated!!! I don't know the answer to this as it may be a contract condition but if so surely it would qualify as 'anti competitive'. Enjoy Monaco."

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"Unfair" team orders leave Perez wanting to talk

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