Pérez breaks silence on tense Verstappen fallout – Sergio Pérez has shed new light on one of the most talked-about yet least understood flashpoints of his time as Max Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull Racing: the lingering feud stemming from the infamous 2022 Monaco Grand Prix incident. Now out of the Red Bull cockpit, Perez reflects on his turbulent years alongside the four-time world champion and offers a revealing glimpse behind the scenes of their frosty relationship, which ultimately fractured in silence.
The Mexican driver partnered with Verstappen from 2021 until the end of 2024 and often played the dutiful support act in Red Bull’s championship campaigns. However, beneath the public image of harmony, cracks were forming, and it all began with one of the sport’s most controversial qualifying sessions in recent memory.
Pérez: ‘I know it from a good source’ Red Bull has HUGE regret
A crash, a conspiracy and a cold war
At the heart of the drama was qualifying for the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix, where Pérez crashed late in Q3. This brought out a red flag, freezing the order and securing him a front-row start while preventing Verstappen from completing his final run. The incident triggered suspicion inside the Red Bull garage, with Verstappen allegedly believing the crash was intentional. Though never publicly confirmed, the fallout lingered well beyond the weekend.
The tension came to a head later that season at the Brazilian Grand Prix. In a shocking moment even for seasoned F1 observers, Verstappen defied a direct team order to let Pérez through to secure vital championship points. His reasoning was cryptic at the time: “I told you last time; you won’t catch me doing it again” and it triggered a media storm.
Red Bull attempted to control the damage, but fans and insiders knew that something deeper was bubbling beneath the surface.
Now, speaking on the Desde el Paddock podcast, Pérez has finally broken his silence.
Pérez: “I’m saving that for my book.”
Looking back on the incident with a grin, Pérez teased that the full story might not be made public just yet.
“I’m saving that for my book!” he said, clearly aware of how much intrigue the Monaco incident still generates. “Then you’ll get the whole story.”
However, he didn’t shy away from offering a few revealing insights.
“Max had a problem with what happened in Monaco,” Perez revealed. “He never said that to my face. He kept it to himself, and it came out six months later.”
According to Pérez, there was no indication at the time that Verstappen had harboured any resentment.
“We talked in Baku about what had happened in Monaco, and everything was fine. The air had been cleared,” he explained.
“But it stayed in Max’s head,” he added.
“That’s Max. He keeps things to himself until the moment they finally come out, and that usually happens on the track.”
Red Bull, silence, and simmering distrust
Pérez’s comments confirmed what many had suspected: that Verstappen’s refusal to yield in Brazil was the culmination of an unspoken grudge that had been brewing within the team for a long time. While Red Bull publicly presented a unified front, the seeds of distrust had already taken root internally.
The timing is telling. When Verstappen refused to help Pérez in Brazil, the Mexican was locked in a fierce battle for second place in the Drivers’ Championship. Red Bull had already secured the title, and Pérez had played a key role in helping Verstappen claim back-to-back crowns.
His defensive masterclass against Lewis Hamilton in Abu Dhabi in 2021 remains legendary. Yet, when he needed support, it wasn’t forthcoming.
This sparked a flurry of speculation. Some media outlets suggested that Verstappen was seeking revenge for what happened in Monaco. Others theorised that there were deeper divisions over team politics and the direction of car development. However, Pérez’s latest remarks confirm that it was indeed Monaco that planted the seed, even if he did not realise it at the time.
Ferrari replaces Leclerc in Austria
Life after Red Bull
Following his departure from Red Bull at the end of 2024, Pérez has taken a step back from the Formula 1 grid. His time with the team was a mixture of podium highs and race wins, as well as increasingly public struggles, especially as Verstappen’s dominance grew and Red Bull’s focus narrowed to a one-driver strategy.
Despite his enforced sabbatical, Pérez isn’t done with Formula 1 just yet. He remains hopeful of returning to the grid in 2026, potentially with a new team such as Cadillac, which is rumoured to be looking for an experienced driver pairing for its debut season.
“Of course I want to come back,” he recently said. “I feel like I still have a lot to give. It just has to be the right project.”
Reflection and unresolved wounds
Pérez’s decision to open up, even partially, about his time at Red Bull paints a picture of a driver who spent three seasons navigating one of the most complex political environments in modern Formula 1. Despite his achievements with the team, he was always just a supporting actor in the Verstappen show, and the Monaco crash served as an accidental — or perhaps not — turning point in their relationship.
Verstappen’s decision to hold a grudge for months without addressing it also raises questions about internal communication at Red Bull. If such a serious breakdown in trust could fester for half a season, what else went unspoken in a team built around one superstar talent?
Although Pérez seems to have made peace with what happened, his comment about saving the ‘whole story’ for a future book suggests that the full truth, whatever it may be, has yet to be revealed.
For now, the paddock is left to interpret the limited information that has emerged. A relationship between teammates that began with hope and mutual respect ended in silence and suspicion, and its consequences may still be shaping the culture of the Red Bull team today.
MORE F1 NEWS – Sainz quits
“Circumstances are not ideal” Carlos Sainz Sr. withdraws from the FIA presidential race – Carlos Sainz Sr. has officially ended speculation about his candidacy, publicly announcing that he will not be standing in the 12 December election in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. This clears the path for the incumbent, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, to seek re-election without a confirmed challenger, at least for now.
In a statement posted on social media on Wednesday, the two-time World Rally Champion explained his reasoning, citing the complexity of the FIA’s internal challenges and his personal and professional racing commitments. “After thoughtful reflection, I have concluded that the present circumstances are not conducive to laying the groundwork for my candidacy,” he wrote…READ MORE ON THIS STORY
With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
