Sergio Perez feels wrath of F1 2024 rival after ‘big moment’ at Hungarian GP

Zhou Guanyu has insisted that Sergio Perez was “not in the right place” after the Sauber driver suffered a dramatic spin during practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Zhou spun on the exit of Turn 4 during the second free practice session at the Hungaroring when Perez ‘s Red Bull was on a slow lap ahead of him.

Zhou Guanyu doubles down on Sergio Perez Hungarian GP near miss

Although Perez was off the racing line – positioned to the right of the track on the approach to the right hander of Turn 5 – at the time of the incident, Zhou immediately pinned the blame on the Red Bull driver, accusing him of getting in his way over team radio.

“This Red Bull. What the f**k?” the Chinese driver was heard saying.

Although the incident was not noted by F1’s governing body the FIA, the Sauber man was adamant that he had not made a mistake and that the dirty air from the Red Bull ahead had contributed to his loss of control.

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Speaking after the session, Zhou, who was classified last of the 20 participants in FP2, accused Perez of not being “in the right place” on the circuit as he closed in on the Red Bull.

He said: “Honestly, he was not in the right place on my lap.

“I hit the dirty air. The corner was there, it’s not like I made a mistake in that corner.

“Just as I was about to go into the lap, I saw the Red Bull ahead so hit the dirty air and that was it.

“It was a big moment, glad I saved it, but honestly at that kind of corner it’s better to stay on the left-hand side because he was on the racing line.”

Perez, meanwhile, argued that he moved out of the way in anticipation of Zhou’s arrival, having been warned by the Red Bull pit wall that the Sauber was closing on him quickly.

He said: “I knew he was coming, so I moved out of the way.

“And when I saw him spinning, I had to go to the left quite quickly to avoid him. Luckily I managed to avoid him and he didn’t have any damage, so that was good.”

The incident between Zhou and Perez caused disagreement in the Sky F1 commentary box, where commentator David Croft appeared to pin the blame on the under-pressure Red Bull man.

He said: “There’s the Red Bull of Sergio Perez and he is right in the way. He is absolutely where Zhou Guanyu did not need him to be.”

Croft’s co-commentator Anthony Davidson, the former F1 racer who made 24 grand prix starts between 2001 and 2008, leapt to Perez’s defence and praised the Mexican driver’s “cat-like reactions” for taking avoiding action as Zhou spun behind him.

He said: “To be fair to Perez there, I think he had cat-like reactions to get out of the way of a spinning car.”

Croft replied: “I’m not saying it was Sergio Perez’s fault, but he was right in the way of where Zhou Guanyu did not want him to be.”

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