Perez is mostly just seeking attention with an absurd claim about Verstappen

The Mexican was a guest on the Cracks Podcast last week. During that episode, he criticised his former team and teammate.

"Working with Max is already very difficult, but being Max’s teammate at Red Bull is the worst job in F1,” he said.

Perez also said that Verstappen has two personalities. He was positive about Verstappen as a person outside the car, but pointed out how the Dutchman can completely change once he gets behind the wheel. That is a clear weakness of Verstappen in the eyes of his former teammate.

First of all, Perez certainly didn’t have it easy at the end of his Red Bull career. In 2024, the RB21 was clearly not the best car on the grid at the end of the season. While the Mexican struggled to perform well during that time, Verstappen could still regularly fight for victories. It is therefore understandable that Perez looks back on his final season with the team with some frustration. Especially in the manner in which he was released, despite having been offered a contract not long before getting the axe.

Still, that is no reason to claim that working with Verstappen is nearly impossible. Look at the comments from other team members. Take team boss Laurent Mekies, for example. The Frenchman joined the team in June. After the 2025 season, he spoke very positively about the influence Verstappen has on his colleagues. "He gives a tremendous amount of confidence,” he said.

Verstappen also works closely with people outside the Red Bull team. One of the best-known examples is the Dutchman’s relationship with the new generation of F1 drivers. In particular, Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto was full of praise for the help he gets from Verstappen. The Brazilian noted that the Dutchman had regularly advised him throughout his junior career on various choices that had to be made.

While you could argue that Bortoleto and Mekies have played completely different roles than Perez, the Mexican could also have taken a page from Alexander Albon. He accepted defeat and spoke only in glowing terms about Verstappen afterward.

It was the London-born Thai driver, in fact, who explained that Red Bull isn’t only about Verstappen, but that it’s logical in a team to look to the fastest man. That part of the story was clearly missing in Perez’s cry for attention, who seemed mostly busy trying to clear his own name.

In short, within the F1 paddock there are multiple people who contradict Perez’s claims. Of course, the Mexican spoke about his own experience with Verstappen. To say that it’s impossible to perform well alongside Verstappen is too simplistic. Especially his statement that it wasn’t even good if he was faster than Verstappen.

With the new F1 season around the corner, in which Perez will return as a Cadillac driver, these remarks can mainly be seen to capture the spotlight. Highlighting Verstappen’s and Red Bull’s weaknesses ensures that, right before his return to F1, the Mexican manages to draw all the attention to himself again, while also trying to clear his own name by implying “it really wasn’t his fault.”

A new episode of the F1 Today podcast appears every week on GPBlog’s channels. Host Thierry Bakker discusses the latest developments surrounding Verstappen and Formula 1. He does so with regular guests Tim Kraaij and Gandor Bronkhorst. The new episode can be viewed below. You can also listen to the podcast on Spotify.