Formula 1 Abu Dhabi GP
Perez's form "transformed completely" after post-Qatar F1 sim brainstorm
Sergio Perez thinks his 2023 Formula 1 form has "transformed completely" thanks to spending three days in the Red Bull simulator after reaching its lowest ebb in Qatar.
Filip Cleeren
Edited: Nov 25, 2023, 9:31 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
After keeping up with Max Verstappen in the early races Perez started struggling to adapt to the tweaked Red Bull RB19 from June's Spanish Grand Prix onwards, with the Mexican admitting to getting "lost" on how he has to set up the car to extract its optimal performance.
During his travails, he frequently struggled to qualify in the top 10 and fell down what he called a "really deep" hole in Qatar, where he finished 80 seconds down on his dominant team-mate.
It prompted a three-day brainstorming session in the Milton Keynes simulator to find a set-up breakthrough, which yielded some set-up wins that helped Perez return to the podium in last week's Las Vegas Grand Prix.
"I had a really deep [hole] in Qatar, where I went back to the factory for a week and went through in very much detail with all the engineers and we understood a lot of things that we were doing to compensate the weaknesses that we had," Perez explained.
"We were probably taking the wrong approach with the car, trying to compensate them too much with car set-up.
"I felt at that time that I needed it. We were just getting lost weekend in, weekend out, so it was just important to step back and really look in detail. And I think since then our season has transformed completely.
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing
"It was about how I can make better use of the car through the weekend, through different circuits.
"I made a lot of progress together with my engineers in understanding how to maximise the performance of the car."
Even if he and Verstappen require different characteristics from the car, Perez said there was "no harm" in looking into what the Dutchman was doing to be as devastatingly competitive in the RB19 as he is.
"Yeah definitely, there are things that you learn from him," he said.
"Obviously, I have the best reference out there, because he was the one who was so competitive. So, I think there is no harm in looking at what he's doing, how he's doing it and trying to learn and improve, see what works for you that he's doing differently to you.
"I've always had a very open approach and I think it's something that works well.
"He's been really on another level. And I think it's great to see obviously, we'd all like to be in his position. But there's only one champion per year."
Read Also:
Formula 1F1 approves plans for sprint format revamp for 2024; Tyre blanket ban abandoned
Formula 1AlphaTauri reveals extent of floor changes for F1's Abu Dhabi GP
Formula 1Verstappen: "Nothing to prove" by having Hamilton as future F1 team-mate
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article F1 approves plans for sprint format revamp for 2024; Tyre blanket ban abandoned
Next article F1 must consult fans over sprint races and stop fiddling with format, say team bosses
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Filip Cleeren
Colton Herta to run Cadillac FP1 in Brazil as FIA superlicence quest continues
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
21 h
Colton Herta to run Cadillac FP1 in Brazil as FIA superlicence quest continues
Rafael Camara to debut in F1 Brazil GP as Esteban Ocon out at Haas
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Rafael Camara to debut in F1 Brazil GP as Esteban Ocon out at Haas
More from
Sergio Perez
Sergio Perez to skip F1 Mexico GP fan forum due to illness
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Sergio Perez to skip F1 Mexico GP fan forum due to illness
Sergio Perez praises Colton Herta impact - but has no say over 2027 Cadillac F1 team-mate choice
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Sergio Perez praises Colton Herta impact - but has no say over 2027 Cadillac F1 team-mate choice
The 10 key moments that defined Sergio Perez's F1 career
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
The 10 key moments that defined Sergio Perez's F1 career
More from
Red Bull Racing
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
2 h
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Max Verstappen needs "a conversation" with Red Bull engine after "random" engine braking issues
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
6 h
Max Verstappen needs "a conversation" with Red Bull engine after "random" engine braking issues
Latest news
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
2 h
Liam Lawson’s remarkable form is giving Red Bull a headache for 2027
Hanley Motorsports announces multi-class IMSA arrival with BMW support and DXDT deal
IMSA
IMSA IMSA 2 h
Hanley Motorsports announces multi-class IMSA arrival with BMW support and DXDT deal
Ryan Preece will switch to No. 6 for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Martinsville II
4 h
Ryan Preece will switch to No. 6 for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
Feature
Discover prime content
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1960s
Formula 1
By Kevin Turner
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1960s
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe