The Dutchman won his second successive F1 world title this year, and both times the Mexican played second fiddle and was used to increase the 25-year-old’s chances of success. There is perhaps no clearer example of this than in the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP title finale, when Perez defended valiantly against Lewis Hamilton for many laps, allowing Verstappen to close the gap between him and the Mercedes star.
While few teams will rarely say outright who is the number one driver, there are plenty of constructors where it is reasonable to guess who has priority. During the Finn’s time at Mercedes, it was clear he was second driver to Hamilton – winning just 10 races in five seasons.
The smallest points difference between the two came in Bottas’ first year when Hamilton was 58 points ahead of him while 2021’s 161.5 was the largest margin during their time as team-mates. Speaking to Viaplay via Planet F1, Verstappen elaborated on his thoughts when it comes to second drivers and warned that any who do not accept their place will find their careers coming to a premature end.
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“Every year he starts fresh,” Verstappen said of Bottas. “But after a few races you realize it’s not going to happen again and you accept your role. He still finished on podiums, he won a few races and took pole positions.
“You just have to accept that the driver next to you is just a bit better. That’s fine, that can happen. It’s important that he accepted it. Some drivers can’t do that and then it goes completely wrong.
“Then they don’t survive for very long. I’m not going to name names, but you have to accept your role. You can’t live in a fairytale world.” Verstappen’s comments could also be seen as a thinly-veiled dig at Red Bull teammate Perez, who he refused to give up a position for at last month’s Brazilian GP.
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The Mexican was left furious as his hopes of finishing second in this season’s driver standings were dealt a huge blow as Verstappen ignored the team order to let Perez pass him and finish P6, depsite already being crowned world champion. After being asked “what happened”, Verstappen replied: “I told you already last summer, you guys don’t ask that again to me. Are we clear about that? I gave my reasons and I stand by it.”
Perez snapped back over team radio: “This shows who [Verstappen] really is.” He later told reporters: “I don’t understand what his reaction was. If he has two championships, it is thanks to me.” They have since buried the hatchet and Red Bull made it clear everyone is on the same page. It will be interesting how the two will react should a similar situation occur in 2023.
