Perez recorded his first DNF in the series last weekend after ballast from another car struck his challenger and damaged it beyond repair. At the time, Perez was driving in points-scoring range, which brought more disappointment to the rookie from Sauber.
As reported earlier this week, Sauber has already sent a brand new chassis to China for Perez to use, as the one at Sepang needs weeks of fixing back at the team's headquarters in Hinwil. However, according to the FIA inspection after the Malaysian Grand Prix, things could have gone a lot worse for the former GP2 driver.
It seems the ballast went through the bodywork and entered the cockpit of the C30.
“I think it was something very unsafe,” said Perez, when talking to reporters in China, according to Autosport. “I was really lucky to get away with no damage (injury) after we saw what had happened to the chassis.”
“It came through very easy, so I am happy that nothing else happened to me. For this weekend we have a new chassis. We didn't see what part it was. We reckon it was ballast, as nothing else could do such damage.”
Although initially believed to belong to Sebastien Buemi's car, the ballast's provenience is yet to be determined. Sauber F1 Team's officials have already forwarded their safety concerns on the matter to the FIA.
“Something was there on the track – we don't know if it was from a Toro Rosso or another team. When [Jaime] Alguersuari drove into it, it just came straight at me and into my car. It was a very dangerous situation because it came into the computer software box and it stopped just before my seat,” he added.
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