After only running in the second free practice, Sergio Pérez ended up as the fifth fastest on Friday at the Abu Dhabi Formula 1 Grand Prix. Red Bull decided to use both rookie drivers in the FP1 at Yas Marina, and this, combined with two red flags in the night session, left the regular drivers with very little track time.
A fact that, emphasized the Mexican, was not ideal: ‘We had to do some tricks. Initially, I had some difficulties with the front end, but obviously, we had very little running – especially with the medium tires. Then, on my outing with the soft tires, I had traffic from drivers with a lot of fuel at the end. It wasn’t a very simple day, not running in the FP1, with very little running. We know that we have to be very careful in the path we choose because when I did my lap, the tires were hot. It wasn’t very representative at that time’.
In Pérez’s understanding, the biggest problem on Friday was indeed the FP2 being so conditioned: ‘I believe that the FP1 here is not very representative. I think it’s more about not having done any long distance. I don’t think it’s very ideal in that aspect, but it is what it is. We will look ahead’.
As for his pace with the soft tires, the Mexican showed himself encouraged: ‘I think we have some potential in that. We have to make some adjustments here and there, and we should be able to recover’.
