Sergio Perez pinpoints critical problem Max Verstappen 'struggles' with

Sergio Perez has explained how Max Verstappen "transforms" when he is in an F1 car, arguing the "bad" parts of the Dutchman are part of who he is.

The Cadillac driver, who returns to F1 after a season on the sidelines following his firing from Red Bull at the end of the 2024 campaign, also highlighted how the four-time F1 drivers' champion "struggles" when things do not go according to his plan.

Having spent four years alongside the 71-time grand prix winner at the Milton Keynes-based squad, Perez saw firsthand how Verstappen operates, in and outside the car.

Whilst the Mexican driver eventually went the same way as Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon before him, and Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda after him, he proved himself to be the strongest team-mate Verstappen has had since Daniel Ricciardo left in 2018.

A good team player and a decent number two driver, there were times, however, when Perez was too competitive, flying too close to the sun in what is ultimately the 28-year-old's team.

It caused friction when the six-time grand prix winner dared to challenge Verstappen, let alone beat him. 

"Max is a mentally super-strong driver. He has great confidence in himself. Incredible talent. Focused on the sport, on racing, on being the best driver, and he’s a huge force for the team. He pushes very hard," Perez told the Cracks Podcast.

"He’s a great leader in the team, and I think the bad is also his character. When things turn against him, he struggles a lot to deal with it."

Perez used Verstappen's infamous collision with George Russell at last year's Spanish Grand Prix to illustrate his point.

"Well, like what happened in Barcelona — he blocks, he has that side that, well, I think if he didn’t have it, he wouldn’t be Max either," he added.

The defied team orders in Brazil

Whilst the 35-year-old and Verstappen enjoyed a good relationship for the most part, tensions reached their apex during the 2022 campaign, something that spilt into the following year.

Seemingly agitated by a mistake Perez made during qualifying at the Monaco Grand Prix, which compromised Verstappen and set the former up for the win, there was a late-season flashpoint in Brazil.

As Perez fought to secure second in the standings in a battle with Charles Leclerc, Verstappen refused to move over during the São Paulo Grand Prix and hand his team-mate sixth, despite having already wrapped up the title.

When the disobeyed team orders were highlighted after the chequered flag, Verstappen exploded, saying: "I told you already last summer, you guys don't ask that again to me. Are we clear about that?"

So when 2023 rolled around and after splitting victories over the opening four rounds, Perez insisted he was in the title fight. Verstappen, meanwhile, vowed never to be beaten by his team-mate again.

The following round, in Miami, he won from ninth on the grid, despite Perez having started from pole. It was a turning point in their tenure together.

Verstappen won the next nine grands prix, and 16 of the final 17 rounds in what was the most dominant championship F1 has seen.

Looking back at the incident at Interlagos, Perez added: "When people — fans — complained that he hadn’t let me pass, that he didn’t reward what I had done for him. I’d say: 'Come on, you have to have that attitude of wanting to win them all to be world champion.'

"No, something happens with Max. Max is an excellent person, but something happens to him. When he’s in the car, he transforms — he’s a different person.

"And I think he had something in him that he never let out, because we talked about it — all the problems that year we talked, discussed, and thought it was behind us — the whole team thought. So we were all surprised he brought it up at that moment."