Perez out: Horner fears engine setting problem | FormulaPassion

Joy and regret

Third pole position in three races for Red Bull, which secured the start at the post of the Australian GP with the usual Max Verstappen. However, as had already happened in Jeddah, the mood in the world champions box is divided in half between those who rejoice and those who despair. If in Saudi Arabia it was the technical problem that occurred to Verstappen during Q2 that ruined the celebrations of the Milton Keynes team, this time the opposite happened: in fact, the pole position of the #1 orange was counterpointed by the Sergio Perez debacleeliminated in Q1 after a long turn 3 – the fifth of his Saturday, after the four of FP3 – and forced to the last position on the grid.

The Perez Mystery

However, the mystery still lingers over what happened to Checo in the initial phase of qualifying. The person concerned, both via radio and during the post-qualifying interviews, attributed the responsibility for going off the track to a problem with his RB19. According to the native of Guadalajara in fact there would have been a incorrect brake balance. The same trouble that haunted him during the third free practice session. Helmut Marko, however, has denied this versionhinting at some sudden changes in power at the power unit level but pointing the finger at the slippery asphalt and – consequently – attributing a driving error to Perez.

Horner’s version

However, a third version of the facts was expressed by the team principal of the Austrian team, Christian Hornerwhich has focused particular attention on the RB19 #11 power unit. “ It’s a big disappointment for Checo not to be up front with Max – commented the British manager – we suspect an engine setting issue contributed to the lockup he had on his first lap in qualifying. But obviously we need all the data to analyze it and make sure that, if there is a problem, it will be fixed by tomorrow. It’s incredibly frustrating for him and for the team, but he’s proven to be a great driver and we’ll try to make as much progress as possible in the race.”.

Max unattainable

Only applause instead for Max Verstappen, capable of debunking even the Melbourne taboo. Today his first pole came on the Albert Park track, tomorrow the target will be his first victory. “Max did an outstanding job in qualifying, especially in these conditions and on this track. Our strategy was a little different today, we weren’t doing the launch laps and the push laps. We just had to do the optimal out lap, get the necessary tire temperature and then do the lap, which we did perfectly.”Horner concluded.