Ahead of is weekend’s Mexican Grand Prix, the Red Bull driver made it plain that he has the support of the entire team.
After being questioned if he would give up a victory to Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez says he is “pretty sure” his entire team wants him to win the Mexican Grand Prix.
Perez will have a large home crowd in Mexico behind him, but he has had to play the team role multiple times this year to assist Verstappen in his Drivers’ Championship bid.
With five races remaining, including a triple-header over the next three weeks, Verstappen leads Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton by 12 points.
“I think it would be a great problem to have on my side,” Perez said and other accredited members of the press, when asked about moving aside for Verstappen on Sunday.
“It always depends on the situation, because most of the decisions are normally taken during the race, during the heat of the event.
“Depending on the circumstances, we’ll see. But I’m pretty sure the whole team, Red Bull, wants me to win this weekend.
“If there’s a race they want me to win, it’s this one. I’m sure I have full support from everyone in my team.”
Focused for qualifying
Perez is in excellent form heading into his home event, having won back-to-back podiums in the last two races.
After the initial runs in Q3, he was on provisional pole position in Austin, only to be bumped down to third. This weekend, the Mexicans are hoping for another strong qualifying performance.
“I really want to carry on my form,” said Perez. “I’m feeling more at home now with the team, with the car.
“I really hope I can [deliver] a great Saturday. Here, [in Mexico] overtaking is generally very hard. We put a lot of demand on the brakes, on the engine.
“It’s always a very tricky race if you’re not at the front. So [I] look forward to doing a good qualifying.”
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