Steiner surprised by Red Bull choice: 'I thought they would make a change'

Since the RB20's performance deteriorated after a strong start of the F1 season, Perez has fallen back in the standings. Due to mistakes and crashes, Q3 repeatedly proved anything but a certainty for the Mexican. At the Belgian Grand Prix, he started from the front row but finished only seventh after George Russell's disqualification.

Rumours kept surfacing about Perez, who signed a contract extension earlier this year. Several drivers were mentioned as possible replacements, including Daniel Ricciardo, Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson. Yet Red Bull eventually opted to let Perez stay, who thus retains his seat next to Verstappen for the time being.

Steiner surprised by Red Bull's decision

Asked if he himself as Red Bull's team principal would have made the same choice, Steiner replied: "I was very surprised by the choice, so that gives you my answer. I was very surprised because after Spa, I thought they would make a change. And they didn't." However, the 59-year-old Italian is convinced that the Austrian team have their reasoning for that choice.

"Obviously, they have their reasons. Or maybe there is a plan behind it which they didn't share, so you never know. But I didn't expect Checo to stay, especially. He did a very good qualifying in Spa, but the race was mediocre. Now the championship, the Constructor Championship, is on the line because McLaren is strong. So I was very surprised," Steiner concluded.

This article was written in collaboration with Kada Sarkozi