Perez was told by his engineer, Hugh Bird, that if Verstappen could not pass Alonso in the closing stages, he would drop him back to help the Mexican in his push for second in the drivers’ standings. Verstappen was instructed several times by race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase in the final lap to allow Perez to pass him. But Verstappen crossed the line 0.4 seconds behind Alonso and four seconds ahead of Perez, who finished seventh. Labiaze asked Verstappen after the checkered flag: “Max, what happened?” The two-time world champion replied: “I already told you last time, don’t ask me that again, okay? Are we clear on this? I gave my reasons and I stand by it.” With Leclerc finishing fourth for Ferrari, he now enters the Abu Dhabi season finale level on points with Perez in the drivers’ championship race for second place. When he crossed the line seventh behind Verstappen, Perez said on the radio: “It shows who he really is.” Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB18, Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB18, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari F1-75, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL36, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari F1-75, the rest of the field away for the start Photo: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images Team captain Christian Horner was also heard on the radio apologizing to Perez. It is believed that some of the tension dates back to qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix, where a crash for Perez on his final lap in Q3 denied Verstappen the chance to beat his team-mate on pole. Perez took pole and won the race for Red Bull, while Verstappen could only finish third. Verstappen and Perez’s radio exchanges – in their entirety Verstappen He flashed: “Max, let Cheko through please. He glared, “Max, what happened?” Verstappen: “I already told you last time, don’t ask me that again, okay? Are we clear about that? I gave my reasons and I stand by it.” PEREZ Perez: “Thanks for that guys. Thanks.” Horner: “I feel sorry for that Czech.” Bird: “We’ll analyze everything later.” Perez: “It shows who he really is.”
