Martin Brundle is sure that Max Verstappen will be crowned world champion for the third time in a row at the end of the season. According to the former McLaren driver, the reigning world champion is of a very ‘special’ level and we should enjoy his performance. Karun Chandhok fully agrees with Brundle’s vision and both think that Sergio Pérez holds up well against a dominant Verstappen.
After the weekend in Baku, a number of experts thought that Pérez could really compete with Verstappen, but Brundle thinks that the weekend in Miami showed exactly why the Mexican is defeated by Verstappen over an entire season. “On Saturday you heard Pérez say: I’m not driving well, I can’t do it. That is an indication of what will happen,” says the Briton in the Sky Sports podcast. “If you compare that to last season, Max (Verstappen, ed.) had some reliability problems at the start of the season. And when you look at how it ended, I think Max will always have an answer. He will be able to come back from ninth place much better than Sergio (Pérez, ed.).’
That does not mean that Pérez has no chance at all. According to Brundle, other factors may influence the title fight. ‘Reliability problems can play a role. If you don’t win, then you really should be second if you have a dominant car. You can’t afford not to finish second, because then it will be difficult to close the gap again.’
No shame in losing to a ‘genius’
According to Brundle, Pérez has also really improved. “But we are in a dominant Verstappen phase. We’re looking at something special and we have to enjoy it.’ Chandhok echoes the words of his Sky Sports colleague. “It’s no shame to be beaten by Verstappen. I’ve said it before, but every five years a genius comes along. And if you can take the occasional victory from such a genius, then I think you’ve had a fantastic Formula 1 career,” says the Indian.
