Debris from Sergio Perez’s shattered RB20
Helmut Marko has revealed Sergio Perez’s Monaco Grand Prix crash cost Red Bull “two to three million”, and that’s not taking any potential lost points into account.
Perez’s Monaco Grand Prix was effectively cut short right at the beginning after a disappointing qualifying session where he was outperformed by Williams’ Logan Sargeant, resulting in his elimination in Q1. Furthermore, Perez’s race ended abruptly due to a crash involving cars positioned towards the back of the field.
Sergio Perez’s Monaco crash was ‘two to three million’ say Red Bull
Perez’s start was disappointing as he surrendered a position to Kevin Magnussen, dropping down to P17.
The Red Bull car collided with the Armco barrier on the side of the track after making contact with the Haas driver. It remains unclear whether Perez failed to give enough space, as claimed by Magnussen, or if Magnussen made an avoidable maneuver, as claimed by Perez.
As photographers scattered, Perez bounced off that initial contact and skidded further down the track to hit the barrier side-on before crossing the track to hit on the other side.
All four corners of his Red Bull RB20 were shattered with only the driver’s survival cell left intact.
Luckily, Perez managed to exit his damaged Red Bull car without any assistance, experiencing only the disappointment of his Monaco Grand Prix coming to an abrupt conclusion.
However, the achievements of Red Bull came with a significant price tag.
During a period of budget restrictions, with this year’s limit set at $135 million, Marko estimated that Sunday’s accident alone cost at least $2 million, possibly even $3 million.
“He informed Sky Deutschland that this is causing us a setback of approximately two to three million due to the budget cap, which is certainly a significant disadvantage.”
Magnussen found himself entangled in yet another crash. I strongly recommend closely reviewing the replays.
I’m grateful that it turned out well, although it was a precarious situation.
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The swift decision made by the stewards, stating that no further action was necessary, caught the Red Bull motorsport advisor off guard.
He continued by expressing his surprise at how swiftly the stewards handled the issue. “These are decisions that are hardly under your control, but the situation was simply perilous.”
He further commented, saying, “You must let it go and move on. It’s truly unfortunate.”
Christian Horner, the team boss, expressed his gratitude as Perez managed to walk away safely from the massive crash.
He informed the media, including PlanetF1.com, that the accident was truly dreadful. He admitted that, at that moment, one’s heart skips a beat and the primary concern becomes ensuring the driver’s safety.
Fortunately, cars have the ability to be repaired. However, the structure and the Halo, along with other safety features, performed effectively, which is crucial. The primary concern is that Checo managed to escape the seemingly severe incident without any injuries.
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