Max Verstappen tipped to get ‘bullied’ by F1 duo unless Red Bull issue resolved

Max Verstappen wins third consecutive Formula One world championship

Max Verstappen could be ‘bullied’ by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri next season unless Sergio Perez can join the title fight, according to F1 pundit Alex Brundle. The battle between the Red Bulls has been completely one-sided this season, with Perez under pressure to ramp up his performances over the coming weeks.

Perez has only fought his way onto the podium in one of the last five races. Team principal Christian Horner stressed that he ‘urgently’ needs to improve after a disastrous weekend in Qatar, which saw him crash out of Saturday’s Sprint and pick up just one point in Sunday’s Grand Prix.

By comparison, Verstappen has won 12 of his last 13 races, sealing a third consecutive Drivers’ Championship long before the end of the season. Despite Red Bull’s striking dominance, Perez faces a fight to cling onto second place in the individual standings.

Week by week, McLaren have been working their way up the field, culminating in back-to-back double podiums in Qatar and Japan.

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As the gap continues to close, Brundle believes that Norris and Piastri could be in a position to team up on Verstappen, unless Perez can find the pace necessary to help his team-mate at the front of the pack.

“[McLaren] are getting used to running at the front,” Brundle told the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast. “Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris might be delivering them a little bit of an issue by being so close together on track, but it opens up some strategic windows for them into the future.

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“If Sergio Perez cannot find form in that Red Bull, it’s going be two-on-one bullying, isn’t it? If McLaren are in the championship [fight] next year. You’ve got to remember that Oscar Piastri is coming into his rookie season, but he’s also coming from Formula 2 and battling for championships.

“He’s been battling wheel-to-wheel, year after year after year through the junior formulas. Lando Norris has had a period of years where his team-mate’s not necessarily been up with him, but he’s been in the midfield of Formula 1, there’s been a lot more strategy.

“And so bizarrely, Oscar Piastri might be a little bit better versed even than Lando Norris, albeit that this is the world of Formula 1.”

Perez is under contract at Red Bull until the end of 2024, but team advisor Helmut Marko has admitted that Norris is one of the drivers under consideration to partner Verstappen once the Mexican makes way.

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