Horner: Max fought for 7th place, as if for a win

The events of the British Grand Prix developed in such a way that Max Verstappen, although he took the lead, ended up finishing only seventh and Sergio Perez, although falling back to last position, ended up finishing second.

Sergio Perez (2nd): “After such a chaotic weekend, today was a good day for me and for the team. This week I was not in the best shape and after the first lap I fell back to last place, so second in the race is an excellent result.

I was very unlucky, on the first lap, through contact with Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, my car had a broken front wing and I finished last. I had to earn back, so I’m very happy with the good result. I am also very happy for Carlos, this is a very pleasant moment for him and for his family.

The fight on the track gave me a lot of pleasure, we fought hard, the feeling was the same as in my youth, when I was engaged in karting. The opponents were fighting fiercely, the battle was wheel to wheel and in the last laps I had a very high heart rate. It’s one of those races where it was important not to give up.”

Max Verstappen (7th): “Given the damage my car has suffered, seventh place can be considered a good result, especially since Sergio came on the podium and we earned a lot of points for the team. Of course I expected more, but today I was just unlucky.

When the race was stopped by red flags, I examined the car: the entire bottom on the left side was cracked. I think I came across a large piece of carbon fiber and at first it felt like one of the wheels was flat when the car’s balance suddenly deteriorated and severe understeer started.

It was very difficult to fly, although I somehow tried to correct the balance.

As far as I understand Alex Albon has been sent to the hospital for a check-up, but I hope he’s okay. When accidents like this happen, it’s always frustrating, and today we saw further evidence that the Halo system has made significant improvements in safety.”

Christian HornerTeam Principal: “On the first lap Sergio’s front wing was damaged, we had to replace the nose cone, but after that he was able to finish second – a great result!

His breakthrough was phenomenal and after leaving the Safety Car he got a new set of tires but he showed both fast pace and exceptional racing ability.

Speaking of Max, when he took the lead, unfortunately some debris damaged the underside of his car leading to a serious loss of downforce. It’s a shame because he had the chance to put in a great race, but now every point earned is important, and he was fighting for 7th place, like he was for the win.

But most importantly, no drivers were injured given the magnitude of today’s accidents, and we hope Alex Albon and Guanyu Zhou will start in Austria in a week.”