Helmut Marko has called the near miss between Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez on the opening lap of the Austrian Grand Prix Sprint "not necessary" after the pair nearly collided. Perez had a better launch off the line compared to Verstappen and managed to take the lead into Turn 1, with the duo then running side-by-side through Turn 2. Two-time F1 World Champion Verstappen was forced to take to the grass as Perez ran him out of road, only to take the lead back when pushing the Mexican wide at Turn 3, leading to him dropping behind Nico Hulkenberg. Red Bull Motorsport Advisor Marko told ORF: "Everything after Turn 1 was not necessary. We have to look at it and I'm still going to talk to Checo about this. "Maybe he didn't see Max."
Perez blames visibility as tensions escalate
For his part Perez blamed the poor visibility at the start of the race as the reason why he didn't spot Verstappen alongside him going through Turn 2, with drivers starting on Intermediates in wet conditions. Team Principal Christian Horner also believed that Perez was unsighted going through the section and insisted the team's rules for engagement were followed . Verstappen would like to see more talks between the team to avoid any repeat and potential contact, which could have resulted in a high speed crash between the two.
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