Two races into the Formula 1 season and the Red Bull team are clear frontrunners.
They have finished first and second in each race, with their drivers taking a victory each.
Red Bull convincingly won the constructors’ championship last season, and Max Verstappen has claimed the previous two drivers’ world championships.
But all is not rosy in the garage of the champions.
There have been rumblings around the team for some time that all was not well at Red Bull and now a deleted tweet has set in motion what could be the story of the season.
After winning in Saudi Arabia, Sergio Perez sent out a tweet to his fans.
“It was tougher than I thought, but in the end I’m happy to get my fifth victory in F1. Very happy with the result of the team. We are going to keep pushing very hard, I want to be champion.”
This tweet was deleted and then re-uploaded, but this time without the line “I want to be champion”.
Verstappen is currently the man in F1.
Over the last two seasons, he has driven at a level only matched by the great Michael Schumacher during Ferrari’s glory years at the start of the century.
But losing to his teammate in Saudi Arabia seemed to frustrate the champion.
He reportedly didn’t show up to a team meeting — frustrated with his car failing during qualifying — and defied his team by pushing on the last lap of the race to secure the fastest lap.
The one championship point award for fastest lap is all that separates the two at the top of the drivers’ standings heading into round 3 in Melbourne.
These events have left many fans asking themselves: can Sergio Perez challenge for the title?
The Mexican certainly thinks so and told his fans he wants it, even if that tweet was deleted.
He also has all the motivation in the world to knock his teammate off his throne.
After being a near-perfect teammate in 2021 and helping Verstappen claim his first drivers’ championship, Perez was let down by the Dutchman a year later.
With Perez fighting Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc for second in the championship last season, the Mexican needed his teammate to return the favour during the penultimate brace of the year.
Instead, Verstappen refused a team order to let his teammate overtake him, denying Perez a few extra points.
Verstappen had nothing to gain — he was already the world champion — and Perez ultimately finished behind Leclerc.
But Verstappen sent a message to Perez that he was the main driver at Red Bull and he would not stand aside for anyone.
Perez has now told his fans he wants that to change, even if the tweet was deleted.
Some of the greatest and fiercest rivalries in F1 have been between teammates fighting for world titles — Hamilton and Rosberg, Vettel and Webber, Senna and Prost.
Perez will need to be near-perfect in 2023 if he is to take the title from Verstappen.
But the Mexican is a seasoned veteran. He has driven for backmarkers and spent most of his career in the midfield.
The 2020 season looked to be his last when he didn’t have a seat heading into the final rounds — then Red Bull called.
The tail end of his career has been littered with highlights. Five wins, pole positions and being part of a championship-winning team.
Now he has what could be his one chance to go for the ultimate prize — the world drivers’ championship.
Standing in his way is a teammate who is the king of the F1 jungle and is never afraid to ignore team orders for his own interests.
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