No one stopped Hamilton just… Checo Pérez and his heroic Turkish defense were a show of control

You must have a good pair of hands, to avoid them Lewis Hamilton It happens to you in a Mercedes, on a wet track and very few people can do it in Formula 1 Made by the Mexican pilot Sergio Perez.

The seven-time champion Red Bull midfielder fought back at Istanbul’s Intercity Park and stopped him from what he claimed was his way to the podium and from attacking his teammate. Max Verstappen.

Hamilton’s attack was fierce, after starting in 11th place, devoured competitors one by one, scoring seconds faster than Perez, who was fourth after a great start.

The Mercedes W12 was the best all weekend. The perfect combination of speed on the straights and downforce on the curves. Checo Pérez saw his difference with Hamilton shrink from 14 to less than a second and from lap 32 of the agreed 58, Hamilton filled his mirrors.

At the age of 35, Hamilton’s onslaught crystallized at Turn 12 as he stood shoulder to shoulder with the Mexican outside. Checo and his English bore him to the pit entrance but again not a single Guadalajara wrinkled. Respectively, the Mercedes showed its power, as did Perez his courage to go deeper into the braking and reclaim the position Hamilton had already taken from him.

An epic moment, even on TV broadcasts, Jenson Button The 2009 world champion and former teammate in both drivers, was praised.

The difficulty of keeping a rider like Hamilton off his course is partly dry, partly wet, and in the other sectors rainy; Where the grip varies, on worn out intermediate tires, this was a real breakthrough.

“It was very difficult, when my car was slower,” Chico Perez told Boone himself in a post-race interview. “It was almost about survival.”

Turkey’s Checo Pérez somehow heroic defense not only led to the podium in his thirteenth career in Formula 1 but also paved the way for Verstappen, who was second in the race, but who didn’t have the speed to fight for first place and could have He is threatened by Hamilton if he overtakes Jalisco.

It must be remembered that in Turkey, due to rain, there was no system to help make more passes, “DRS” (Drag Reduction System), which is when the rear wing is adjusted in some areas of the track, as it is less than a second apart from the other, To reduce its resistance to wind and make it faster on straight roads. So passes and defenses were pure, thorough, old school tackle.

Turkey’s podium was a special moment, but more than celebrating with champagne and a cup, Checo Pérez took a different moment from the Ottoman lands than he had come to. Confidence is on the rise now, the demonstration against Hamilton reinforces that and deserves more because it is against one of the best players ever.

Checo has been living a string of few points since his return after the summer break, and his mistakes and team mistakes, and the misfortune caused by torrential rain, sidelined him from the podiums in Monza and Russia, but in Turkey, Perez exorcised evil spirits. Rain, the same who refused to go up to celebrate the steps of the top three, now can not with it.

Harsh conditions for all 20 drivers on the track and a misty readout of the difference in the pits. To enter or not to enter, will the intermediate tires hold the entire race? Ocon has proven that they will, but not necessarily that they will be fast, nor that switching all the way, like Hamilton, will give them the performance to set good times. In the end, luck plays too and the moment to “tempt” him to stop was the key to “choosing” the three on the platform.

The important thing for Perez was to get rid of the pressure-packed mass that had overwhelmed him against the six remaining races on the calendar: the US, Mexico, Brazil, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi. Positive deadlock and refocusing on goals that will help Verstappen win the drivers’ championship and take the constructors’ championship.

Perez closes approaching, do not lose sight of you.