"Totally wrong" F1 VSC message interfered in French GP result - Perez
Red Bull's Sergio Perez says he lost third place in the Formula 1 French Grand Prix due to a "totally wrong" message regarding the ending of the virtual safety car.
In the latter stages of Sunday's Paul Ricard race, Perez was embroiled in a battle with Mercedes' George Russell over the final podium place.
A late virtual safety car was called when Alfa Romeo's Zhou Guanyu broke down at Turn 6 with four laps remaining.
On lap 51 of 53, the VSC was ended, but Perez was caught out by an incorrect message from the FIA, telling him racing would resume earlier than it did, which allowed Russell to take the final podium spot away from the Red Bull driver.
In the regulations over virtual safety car periods, the green flag must be shown 10-15 seconds after the initial end message is given, but in this instance, it took close to a minute.
"It was very unfortunate what happened with the virtual safety car," Perez said after finishing fourth on Sunday.
"I got the message it was going to end out of Turn 9, so I went for it and then it didn't end. Then I got the message saying it was going to end through Turn 12. And I was just too close to it.
"It seems like George had different information and he was able to prepare better for it [the restart].
"I mean it's a shame the virtual safety car interfered with the result, to be honest. It shouldn't be the case, but today it was the case.
"It [the message of VSC ending] was totally wrong, there was something going on because it said it was going to end out of Turn 9 and it only ended out of Turn 12."
Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB18, George Russell, Mercedes W13, in the pit lane
Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner believes Perez had the pace to fend off Russell over the final three laps without the VSC issue, and wants to discuss it with the FIA to understand what happened.
"Checo struggled a little more this weekend with [tyre] degradation than we've seen previously," Horner began.
"And what was frustrating for him is there was an issue in race control with the safety car, the VSC, because they couldn't turn it off, so they had to do a reset.
"Just talking with him, he said he wasn't getting the delta in his car, so he was bang on his delta.
"George either pre-empted it but was within the delta, or maybe the information to the two cars was different.
"We have to go and explore that. Yeah, it was frustrating, because I think he would have had the pace to hold him off for a double podium.
"Nevertheless, it's still important points today in both championships."
Additional reporting by Luke Smith
F1 Grand Prix race results: Verstappen wins French GP
Sainz trusts Ferrari made right French GP F1 strategy call
Crutchlow: Yamaha MotoGP bike “needs less power” despite rider demands
Crutchlow: Yamaha MotoGP bike “needs less power” despite rider demands Crutchlow: Yamaha MotoGP bike “needs less power” despite rider demands
Binder buoyed after setting Motegi lap record on new KTM chassis
Binder buoyed after setting Motegi lap record on new KTM chassis Binder buoyed after setting Motegi lap record on new KTM chassis
The hockey expansion rule that could benefit Andretti's F1 bid
The hockey expansion rule that could benefit Andretti's F1 bid The hockey expansion rule that could benefit Andretti's F1 bid
Horner: Avoiding Qatar grid penalty only positive from Perez Japan F1 weekend
Horner: Avoiding Qatar grid penalty only positive from Perez Japan F1 weekend Horner: Avoiding Qatar grid penalty only positive from Perez Japan F1 weekend
Red Bull's F1 rivals expect it to bounce back immediately in Japan
Red Bull's F1 rivals expect it to bounce back immediately in Japan Red Bull's F1 rivals expect it to bounce back immediately in Japan
Why Singapore’s 2023 F1 track changes should hurt Red Bull
Why Singapore’s 2023 F1 track changes should hurt Red Bull Why Singapore’s 2023 F1 track changes should hurt Red Bull
Mercedes fears it has lost race-day F1 tyre edge over Ferrari
Mercedes fears it has lost race-day F1 tyre edge over Ferrari Mercedes fears it has lost race-day F1 tyre edge over Ferrari
Clock ticking on Ford Bathurst 1000 parity changes
Clock ticking on Ford Bathurst 1000 parity changes Clock ticking on Ford Bathurst 1000 parity changes
D'station reveals plans to return to SUPER GT in 2024
D'station reveals plans to return to SUPER GT in 2024 D'station reveals plans to return to SUPER GT in 2024
Kevin Harvick disqualified from Talladega Cup race
Kevin Harvick disqualified from Talladega Cup race Kevin Harvick disqualified from Talladega Cup race
Ranking the top 10 Benetton F1 drivers
Ranking the top 10 Benetton F1 drivers Ranking the top 10 Benetton F1 drivers
When Mansell and Senna settled their differences in an F1 pitlane scuffle
When Mansell and Senna settled their differences in an F1 pitlane scuffle When Mansell and Senna settled their differences in an F1 pitlane scuffle
The F1 treasure map where Hamilton hopes Mercedes hits gold
The F1 treasure map where Hamilton hopes Mercedes hits gold The F1 treasure map where Hamilton hopes Mercedes hits gold
The two F1 rules problems Perez’s recent mishaps expose
The two F1 rules problems Perez’s recent mishaps expose The two F1 rules problems Perez’s recent mishaps expose
How football has posed difficult questions for F1
How football has posed difficult questions for F1 How football has posed difficult questions for F1
The fans that offer a ray of light in an increasingly partisan F1
The fans that offer a ray of light in an increasingly partisan F1 The fans that offer a ray of light in an increasingly partisan F1
Japanese Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023
Japanese Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023 Japanese Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023
How Verstappen’s crushing Japanese GP win showed Singapore was a blip
How Verstappen’s crushing Japanese GP win showed Singapore was a blip How Verstappen’s crushing Japanese GP win showed Singapore was a blip
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.