Liam Lawson clashed with Sergio Perez at the Mexico City Grand Prix as the two drivers battle for the seat alongside Max Verstappen next year. And Helmut Marko has now provided an update on how the situation has been handled. There was clearly an added edge to their on-track battle at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

Perez is trying to fend off the threat of Lawson, who returned to the RB cockpit at the United States Grand Prix at the expense of Daniel Ricciardo. Equally, Lawson is trying to prove to Red Bull that he’d be an upgrade on the underperforming veteran. He tried to shut the door when Perez attempted a move up the inside into the turn four and five chicane.

Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty ImagesLawson held the inside for the second part of the corner and refused to back off, even taking to the grass. When he came back onto the circuit, the two drivers made contact, with Perez’s aerodynamics completely compromised by sidepod damage. The stewards ruled it a racing incident, but both drivers were livid.

Perez called Lawson an ‘idiot’ over the radio, while Lawson made a middle-finger gesture at him when he passed him later in the race. The RB driver ultimately finished 16th after damaging his front wing in a late incident with Franco Colapinto. Perez was the last classified finisher in 17th.

Helmut Marko says Red Bull have accepted Liam Lawson apology after Sergio Perez clashWriting in his column for Speedweek, Marko struck a diplomatic tone on their spat. He said both drivers had been ‘too impetuous’. He also revealed that Red Bull had privately accepted Lawson’s apology for swearing at Perez.

That suggests that they consider the matter closed. Marko will hope the two drivers don’t cross paths again on track this season. Given the pace differential between the two cars, it would suggest something has gone majorly wrong for Perez.

“This was followed by a duel with Liam Lawson, in which both drivers were too impetuous,” he wrote. “Liam even gave his opponent the finger; he later apologized for this, and we accepted that. “Unfortunately, this duel resulted in considerable damage to Perez’s car; with significantly reduced downforce, Sergio’s car was no longer fast enough to do anything.

”Martin Brundle shares what Liam Lawson must still ‘learn the hard way’Guenther Steiner says Lawson should ‘clean the streets’ as part of FIA community service after his explicit gesture. Fellow Red Bull employee Verstappen must serve a penalty after swearing in a press conference in Singapore. After a year away, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Lawson has returned to F1 with such great aggression.

He’s desperate to make the most of his opportunity. Lawson angered Fernando Alonso at the US GP and quickly incurred the wrath of Perez too. That suggests he could generate significant controversy if he races in F1 full-time from 2025.

But Martin Brundle says Lawson must learn to race more cautiously. He can’t use the same approach that worked for him in the junior formulae, because the risk of damage is greater in F1.