Hope springs eternal as Perez keeps Verstappen honest
It’s coming to something when, just four races into a Formula 1 season, the main narrative is along the lines of, “well, at least the number two driver at the top team is doing better than usual”.
Bearing in mind the characteristics of the Suzuka circuit play beautifully to the strengths of the Red Bull, few expected anything other than another tour de force from Max Verstappen in the Japanese Grand Prix. Only the event’s switch to spring – and the likely colder weather exacerbating one of Red Bull’s few weaknesses, in the form of tyre warm-up – offered any hope to the rest.
The thing is, this time Perez genuinely did step up to the plate, in the spirit of Jochen Mass at Montjuic Park in 1975. As Alex Kalinauckas explains in our in-depth report on p14, the Mexican kept Verstappen on his toes at Suzuka. And he was fast enough last weekend to nullify the strategy games of the Ferraris and Mclarens, which on many other weekends over recent times would have led to someone else finishing second. He’s also very much in the picture at Red Bull for 2025, as we explain on p4.
Elsewhere in this issue, we enjoy British motorsport national treasure Derek Warwick looking back on p32 with Kevin Turner at the best 10 races of his career – stand by for everything from F1 to short ovals… Tom Ingram chats enthusiastically on p40 about his hopes of reclaiming the British Touring Car champion’s crown, and Marcus Pye looks ahead on p44 to what will no doubt be another fabulous weekend at the Goodwood Members’ Meeting.