Christian Horner regrets the “heartbreaking” accident in Baku that “ruined the race” for podium finisher Sergio Perez

“Unfortunately, he lost a lot of time on his out laps behind Alex Albon and then Lando [Norris] cost him a lot of money, which Oscar [Piastri] track position,” he said. “I think without that he would have won the race today.”

“It is heartbreaking for him and the team that so much effort is put in only to lose a podium place in the final laps of the race.”

Despite his retirement, his performance seemed on average stronger than that of his teammate Max Verstappen, who crossed the finish line in fifth place behind his championship rival Norris.

READ MORE: 'We paid the price' – Verstappen reflects on damaging car problems that affected Baku race

Regarding the different confidence levels in Baku, Horner explained that Perez had “found a good rhythm and a good setup” and had a “very fast” car for the race.

“I think we maybe did a couple of things with Max's car that didn't work so well and I think we probably damaged the tyres quite a bit because we were battling in that group for so long,” he added. “If you look at George Russell's stint, he started very, very slowly and then just picked up and ended up with a better tyre. So yeah, really very frustrating.”