P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Perez: F1 safety car meant it was "game over" for second place in China
In the Chinese Grand Prix, Ferrari’s Leclerc and McLaren’s Norris delayed their pitstop, successfully converting to a one-stop strategy under a mid-race safety car period initiated by Valtteri Bottas’ incident. Red Bull’s Perez and Verstappen, having pitted under green flag earlier, were forced to pit again to switch to hard tyres. Despite Verstappen’s strong pace maintaining his lead, Perez found himself behind Norris and Leclerc after passing Leclerc drained his tyre life, hindering his pursuit. Perez expressed disappointment in being unable to catch Norris due to the exhausting battle with Leclerc causing significant tyre degradation, resulting in a 3rd place finish. Red Bull Team Principal Horner concurred that the untimely safety car disrupted their chances of a better finish, with Perez losing track position and struggling to make up ground in the closing laps.
