Red Bull’s ‘strange’ radio mystery leaves Sergio Perez out in the dark

Formula 1 fans have been left scratching their heads after Red Bull left one driver completely in the dark as the race unfolded.

BAKU, AZERBAIJAN – APRIL 28: Esteban Ocon of France and Alpine F1 looks on in the garage during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan at Baku City Circuit on April 28, 2023 in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Max Verstappen was a man on a mission during the Miami Grand Prix on Monday morning after being cruelly denied during qualifying on Sunday.

The back-to-back world champion was stuck in ninth place on the grid but it mattered little once the lights went out.

Watch the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix 2023 Live and ad-break free in racing on Kayo Sports this Monday May 8th 5:30AM AEST. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

Verstappen quickly made his way through the field, moving into second spot behind his teammate Sergio Perez after only 15 laps.

After Perez went into the pits on lap 21 it was clear air for the Dutch star as he opened the gap to the rest of the field.

His first and only pit stop came on lap 43 and despite coming out just behind Perez, it only took a lap before he retook the lead and stormed away to the chequered flag with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso registering another third placed finish.

Despite Verstappen’s dominance, Red Bull’s communication with their two drivers left fans scratching their heads.

As the world champion extended his lead before making his first pit stop, team principal Christian Horner was in constant communication with him detailing the gap to his teammate.

Sky Sports’ Antony Davidson pointed out however that Perez wasn’t being fed any information whatsoever.

“It’s been really strange listening to Perez’s radio. They haven’t told him anything about this fight between himself and Max Verstappen,” he said on the coverage.

“Whereas on Verstappen’s side of the garage, it’s been constant. We’ve heard it coming through, that constant check on how the relative race gap is between him and his teammate.

“Perez has been out there, in a way, driving blind. It’s been very odd. A bit too quiet on his radio.”

Perez was left in the dark. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

Horner defended the difference in communication during the race, saying: “They both knew the gap, the 20 seconds for the pit stop.

“The gap was 19.8(s) and Checo had that for four or five laps, so he knows that number. He’s looking obviously at what the gap then is to Max on a lap-by-lap basis, which he got every lap. He then just had to take one number from the other and he knew exactly where Max was.”

The win extends his lead atop the drivers standings to 14 points and also saw him etch his name into the Formula 1 record books.

Not since back in 1984 had a driver started from ninth place on the grid before marching to victory.

Niki Lauda was the last man to achieve the historic feat with Verstappen becoming the fifth man in F1 history to do it.

The driver starting 9th has won only four Grands Prix is Formula 1 history - and has not won in almost 40 years!

🇲🇨 1955 - Maurice Trintignant
🇮🇹 1967 - John Surtees
🇨🇦 1977 - Jody Scheckter
🇫🇷 1984 - Niki Lauda

Verstappen starts 9th today.#MiamiGP#F1

— Lights Out ●●●●● (@LightsOutF1Blog) May 7, 2023

Many predicted carnage to unfold during the race after an overnight shower soaked the already slippery Miami track.

But as the race got underway and the warm conditions kicked in the track only got quicker throughout the race as the drivers avoided any issues.

A lock up on the opening lap from Alpha Tauri’s Nyck de Vries saw him hit the back of McLaren’s Lando Norris and Williams’ Logan Sargeant picked up a damaged front wing.

Beyond that it was smooth sailing as the Red Bull duo again flexed their muscles out in front.

Miami Grand Prix race results

1: Max Verstappen, 2: Sergio Perez, 3: Fernando Alonso, 4: George Russell, 5: Carlos Sainz, 6: Lewis Hamilton, 7: Charles Leclerc, 8: Pierre Gasly, 9: Esteban Ocon, 10: Kevin Magnussen, 11: Yuki Tsunoda, 12: Lance Stroll, 13: Valtteri Bottas, 14: Alex Albon, 15: Nico Hulkenburg, 16: Zhou Guanyu, 17: Lando Norris, 18: Nyck de Vries, 19: Oscar Piastri, 20: Logan Sargeant.

Spirited defence from Perez but Verstappen is through. This is a big statement from the reigning champ today. He's going to take some stopping this year.

— Nate Saunders (@natesaundersF1) May 7, 2023

6.40am (AEST) - History awaits Verstappen

Max Verstappen is marching away at the front of the race. With 43 laps in the books the Red Bull superstar still hasn’t been into the pits but has a big enough margin on his teammate to emerge from the pits ahead.

If he’s to cross the line first it’ll be the first race winner to start from ninth on the grid since way back in 1984 when Niki Lauda achieved the feat.

The driver starting 9th has won only four Grands Prix is Formula 1 history - and has not won in almost 40 years!

🇲🇨 1955 - Maurice Trintignant
🇮🇹 1967 - John Surtees
🇨🇦 1977 - Jody Scheckter
🇫🇷 1984 - Niki Lauda

Verstappen starts 9th today.#MiamiGP#F1

— Lights Out ●●●●● (@LightsOutF1Blog) May 7, 2023

6.10am - Verstappen in front

Sergio Perez complained about his tyres starting to deteriorate and Red Bull called him in after 20 laps on mediums.

Max Verstappen who started on hards now leads the Miami Grand Prix after closing the gap to under two seconds despite starting ninth on the grid.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was handed a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane after locking up right as he entered the pits.`

LAP 21/57

Checo Perez pits from the lead, bolting on a set of hard @pirellisport tyres after running on the mediums thus far

Live updates 👉 https://t.co/MddmLh2Nm7#MiamiGP#F1pic.twitter.com/NNE3tIjOvf

— Formula 1 (@F1) May 7, 2023

6am (AEST) – Verstappen picking the grid apart

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen started ninth on the grid but in less than 10 laps the two-time world champion has moved up to fourth.

Ahead of him now is Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and his teammate Sergio Perez.

Five laps later and the Red Bull duo are now running 1-2 in the race after Verstappen breezed past Sainz and Alonso in consecutive laps.

5.35am – Opening laps in the books

The opening laps have come and gone with no major incidents. A lock up from Alpha Tauri’s Nyck de Vries thankfully didn’t cause any back of the grid carnage.

Aussie Oscar Piastri has been the big early winner, picking up five spots in the opening lap and a half.

Starting on a set of soft tyres the McLaren driver has picked his opponents off.

5am – F1 legend goes rogue on the grid

Martin Brundle’s pre-race grid walk has once again delivered the goods, but this time it wasn’t Brundle being snubbed by a celebrity.

The Sky Sports maestro attempted to get ahold of Roger Federer who was in a roped off area in the Mercedes section.

His attempts to shout out to the Swiss master failed, but thankfully Jackie Stewart was on hand.

The three-time world champion wasn’t letting a piece of rope stand in his way as he strolled into the cordoned off section.

Security attempted to get in his way as Brundle nervously waited for them to kick him out, but George Russell came in to keep security at bay as Stewart got his hands on Federer and delivered him to Brundle for a 30-second interview.

Jackie Stewart making his way through bodyguards to get Roger Federer for Martin Brundle’s grid walk was 👌🏻😂 pic.twitter.com/2dLl3rQg3x

— WTF1 (@wtf1official) May 7, 2023

5am – Alpine boss fumes over ugly season

Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi isn’t happy with what his team has produced so far during the 2023 season.

With only eight points on the board through the opening four races, the team have fallen behind the middle of the pack.

Rossi didn’t mince his words when he was asked about the teams performance ahead of the Miami Grand Prix.

“It’s disappointing, it’s actually bad,” he said to Canal+.

“This year ended up starting with a flawed performance and flawed delivery. It’s obvious our position in the standings is not worthy of the resources we spend, and we are quite far – in fact very far – from this year’s end goal.

“I’m noting not only an obvious lack of performance and rigour in the delivery, but also potentially a state of mind that is not up to this team’s past standards.”

It’s time to deliver, Pierre. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP)

Things got off to a nightmare start during the season opener when Esteban Ocon was handed three separate penalties.

“I did not like the first Grand Prix, because there was a lot of – I’m sorry for saying this – amateurishness, which led to a result that wasn’t right. It was mediocre, bad,” he said.

“And the last race in Baku was tremendously similar to the one in Bahrain. That is not acceptable.”

Pierre Gasly, who joined Alpine this season, produced his best qualifying display finishing fifth fastest for the race, narrowly ahead of Ocon in eighth.

The team will be out to put more points on the board and prove they’re a leader among the midfield teams.

11pm (AEST) – Grid order for Miami Grand Prix

1. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) 2. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

3 Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 4 Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

5 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 6 George Russell (Mercedes)

7 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 8 Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

9 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 10 Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)

11 Alexander Albon (Williams) 12 Nico Hulkenburg (Haas)

13 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 14 Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)

15 Nyck De Vries (AlphaTauri) 16 Lando Norris (McLaren)

17 Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) 18 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

19 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 20 Logan Sargeant (Williams)

Originally published as Red Bull’s ‘strange’ radio mystery leaves Sergio Perez out in the dark