Sergio Perez accepted responsibility for colliding with teammate Valtteri Bottas at the start of Formula 1's Chinese Grand Prix. The incident happened in Turn 3 while battling for 14th place. Both Cadillac drivers completed the race, finishing 13th and 15th.
At the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, Cadillac's Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas were contesting 14th position in Turn 3 after pre-race incidents eliminated four cars. Perez attempted to stay on the inside of Bottas but encountered Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin on the outside. This squeezed Perez onto the kerb, where his front-right wheel struck Bottas' sidepod, causing Perez to spin and damaging his teammate's car. A subsequent safety car helped Perez recover quickly, losing only a few seconds initially. Bottas overtook Alonso on lap 6, with Perez following on lap 15. Alonso later retired due to severe vibrations affecting his hands and feet. Cadillac's cars, referred to as black-and-white MAC-26s, ended up 13th for Bottas—who overtook Esteban Ocon on the final lap after Ocon's clash with Franco Colapinto—and 15th for Perez. Perez described the move as a 'misjudgement' on his part: 'That was all on me... I saw the gap, I went for it. But obviously, looking at it, Valtteri had nowhere to go.' He apologised immediately, noting it was important to own up without bad intentions. Bottas reported a missing piece from his floor's left side but remained positive: 'Very, very happy to be 13th in our second grand prix for the team, getting already close to the points.' He highlighted pride in finishing both cars despite lacking pace, mainly competing with Aston Martin. Perez added that reliability was decent apart from fuel system issues, emphasising the need for better preparation to hold track position.
