Webber: 'Perez was incredibly distracted again in Qatar'

Sergio Perez once again did not have a strong race in Qatar and, after several time penalties, just managed to claim the last available point with a P10. Former Red Bull Racing driver Mark Webber sees that the Mexican is incredibly distracted and hopes Perez is back to his old self soon.

Perez heavily distracted in Qatar

In a humiliating display in the GP of Japan that he failed to finish, the P8 he achieved in Singapore, and the bad weekend in Qatar, in which his teammate Max Verstappen became world champion with five races to go, Perez gained just five points in total. Lewis Hamilton is currently in P3 but is closing in on the Red Bull driver. Perez is lucky that the Briton could not finish his race in Qatar. The Mercedes was fast and could have made up a lot of ground.

It remains to be seen whether Perez can hold on to his P2. Webber comments to Channel 4 that Perez is struggling. The presenter asks the former F1 driver if we are currently watching Perez's downfall. Webber replies, "I think that he was just again heavily distracted tonight. Not operating a grand prix car, putting it in the window it needs to be for lap after lap after lap, whether his mind’s somewhere, he’s just shattered with confidence?"

'Perez can get back to his old self relatively easily'

His position alongside Verstappen at Red Bull is one of the most coveted spots by ambitious talented new drivers. Within Red Bull, Daniel Ricciardo is a possible successor for later. Although the team says it wants to continue with Perez through 2024, there are also signs that patience is running out. For example, team advisor Dr Helmut Marko made himself heard after the race, saying he would rather not comment on Perez's situation with the Mexican GP on the doorstep.

Webber continued: "If he can get himself one half-decent weekend, I think he’s a chance to get back to himself at the start of the season. But ultimately, right now, he cannot take a trick to compound by the mistakes [sic], and it’s tricky times for him.."