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It was recently reported that Sergio Perez's request to drive the RB19 with specific parts used before the Spanish GP was rejected by Red Bull. This was particularly because the Mexican started struggling even more with the car in the race in Barcelona.
He continued to be in the slump for the rest of the season and lost his small chance of winning, or at least fighting for the World Championship, against his teammate Max Verstappen.
According to Auto Motor und Sport, Sergio Perez stated that the RB19 no longer fit his driving style. He said:
"The driving characteristics no longer fit my driving style. The moment came again when I had to think more about how to drive a car to be quick."
Even though he did not feel comfortable with the car, he understands that Red Bull was mainly trying to make the car faster. Sergio Perez somewhat blamed himself for not adapting quickly enough to the changes.
He said:
"They bring upgrades to make the car faster. It got faster too. Only I found it harder to drive the car. Then you have to adapt. I didn't do it as quickly as I should."
The German publication also stated that Sergio Perez made a request to run an RB19 with pre-Barcelona specifications so that he could also have a car that suited him. However, this plea from the Mexican driver was rejected by Red Bull.
Christian Horner on Sergio Perez's downfall creating a gap in Red Bull's driver lineup
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner recently spoke about Sergio Perez's downfall in the 2023 F1 season by comparing driver lineups from other teams.
Speaking to the media after the Qatar GP, Horner stated how teams like Mercedes, McLaren, and Ferrari have strong driver pairings that are equally competitive with each other. Though this was the case with Red Bull as well, Perez's downfall has created a massive difference in their lineup.
"You can see Mercedes have a pair, McLaren have a pair, Ferrari have a pair that are quite tight between the respective drivers. I think we've had that at the earlier point in the year. But as the season has gone on it's become more variant. We just need to get Checo back to the best form that he's capable of," said Horner.
Checo is still second in the drivers' championship with 224 points, but he is miles behind Max Verstappen, who is cruising at the top with 433 points.
