Sergio Perez had a weekend to forget at the Canadian Grand Prix, and Red Bull team principal Christian Horner did not mince words. After a disastrous qualifying and an even more troubling race that saw Perez retire on lap 51, Horner emphasized the urgent need for Perez to regain his form as the team looks ahead to Barcelona.
Max Verstappen clinched a hard-fought victory in Montreal, which, combined with the double retirement of Ferrari drivers, allowed Red Bull to extend their lead in the constructors’ championship by 49 points. But while Verstappen was celebrating, Perez was nursing the wounds of a ‘horrible’ weekend.
‘It was a horrible weekend for Checo and obviously, we picked up some damage,’ Horner told Sky Sports. ‘He’ll need to come back strong in Barcelona.’ Horner was clear that despite Ferrari’s misfortune, Red Bull can’t rely on luck. ‘We got away with it today but we need Checo back up there where he was at the beginning of the year from Barcelona onwards.’
Perez’s recent performances have been lackluster, accumulating just four points over the last three races— a tally surpassed by ten other drivers and matched by the under-pressure Daniel Ricciardo. Despite signing a fresh two-year contract with Red Bull, Perez’s current form raises questions.
However, Horner still believes in Perez’s resilience. ‘What we see with Checo time and time again is that when you think he’s on the ropes, he bounces back. He’s a tough racer and he’s a tough character and it hurts him more than anybody else. He’ll be determined to come back and show everybody the form we know he’s capable of and that he showed in the first four races of this year.’
Perez, now fifth in the drivers’ standings, shared his thoughts on the struggle to make progress at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. ‘No, we were able to sort that out. I think today was just one line, it was so difficult to pass at times. It was only later in the race when the dry line started to open up, and early on it was just a matter of keeping it together. It has been a very tough couple of weekends. I think we will just regroup, put our heads down and learn from the weekend.’
He admitted that a qualifying issue contributed to his low grid position, but he owned up to his race-ending crash, explaining, ‘That was just on me. I touched the wet part into Turn 6 and you couldn’t stop the car. It was completely wet. I touched the brakes and just couldn’t stop, so that was a bit unfortunate.’
With Barcelona on the horizon, all eyes will be on Perez to see if he can return to his early-season form and help Red Bull maintain their lead in the championship.
Sergio Perez faces immense pressure to turn around his fortunes starting in Barcelona. Although he has shown grit and determination in the past, the coming races will be a true test of his resilience and capability.
Source: Motorsport
