Sergio Perez joined Max Verstappen’s RB20 setup for the Japanese Grand Prix, while the Mexican driver secured his third podium of the season.
Max Verstappen’s exceptional performance in recent races has been hard to replicate for any other driver on the grid. Sergio Perez has been overshadowed by his teammate’s incredible results. Since joining the team in 2021, the Mexican driver has not been able to outperform Verstappen. Red Bull Motorsport Consultant Dr. Helmut Marko acknowledged that Perez simply couldn’t beat his Dutch colleague.
Marko stated that Perez was much closer to Verstappen compared to his disastrous campaign last year. It is worth noting that Checo has been using the same RB20 setup as the current world champion, which Marko believes is the most effective. Marko did not hesitate to admit that the 34-year-old driver couldn’t beat Verstappen even with the same setup. Therefore, there was no point in Perez trying different configurations for his car.
Helmut Marko highlighted that Sergio Perez’s mentality has changed from the previous season, as he now focuses on being the best possible in the car. Marko also mentioned Perez’s second places in the early races. Additionally, Perez has been much closer to Max Verstappen during most qualifying sessions in the 2024 season.
Sergio Perez has struggled to achieve good results in qualifying over the years. Helmut Marko recently made a sarcastic comment about Perez’s qualifying performances, as the Mexican driver placed his car on the front row for the race. Marko noted that it had been a long time since Checo started a race in such a favorable position. Therefore, Perez’s performance in the Japanese Grand Prix exceeded the expectations of the Red Bull team consultant.
The octogenarian praised the efforts of the Milton Keynes team after a fantastic 1-2 in Suzuka. Red Bull bounced back after a tough weekend at the Australian Grand Prix. Marko emphasized that the updates made to the RB20 immediately proved to be effective. Additionally, the team successfully adjusted the car according to the drivers’ preferences.
Red Bull will continue to make small adjustments to their car to further widen their advantage over the competition. Currently, Milton Keynes is on track to have another dominant season, similar to the previous year. Therefore, all eyes will be on the Red Bulls during the Chinese Grand Prix weekend and how the Austrian team defends against the increasing pace of their rival team at the pinnacle of motorsport.
