Sergio Perez was dominated by Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen throughout the 2023 campaign.
Sergio Perez has admitted that his performance level regressed throughout the season in 2023, while team-mate Max Verstappen moved up the gears and stamped his dominance on the Red Bull battle. With one year left on his current contract, the Mexican driver has made progression his ‘main priority’ as the new campaign approaches.
The 33-year-old raced out of the blocks when the year got underway in Bahrain, following up his P2 finish at the season opener with two wins in the next three races. However, the second of these triumphs – a classy, well-managed victory on the streets of Baku – would be his final victory of the campaign.
Max Verstappen, meanwhile, exerted his dominance and became at one with the RB19. The Dutchman won a record-breaking ten consecutive Grands Prix between Miami and Monza and then responded to a disappointing weekend in Singapore by stringing together a further seven straight victories to end the year.
The result of his unfathomable dominance was a comfortable third successive World Championship. Verstappen ended the season with 574 points to his name – more than double the tally of Perez, who had looked like a genuine title contender after the first four rounds of the year.
Speaking to AutoHebdo about his fortunes in 2023, Perez explained: “I want to be able to achieve regularity, to build momentum. I think what we missed this year is progression. We started the year very high, tied with Max, but we were not able to progress throughout the season. We have sometimes even regressed.
“So I think that will be my main priority: to be able to progress throughout the season, whatever my starting point. It is important that, weekend after weekend, we continue to evolve and improve.”
Despite his struggles with the car, particularly before and after the summer break, Perez is aware of what he needs to improve ahead of the 2024 campaign. The 33-year-old is fighting for a new contract and his F1 future this year.
“I had a few bad weekends,” he continued. “We started the year very strong in the first five or six races, but then we couldn’t progress with the car. This is something I missed and want to massively improve.
“The problems we had this year gave me a better understanding of what I was doing with the settings, how I was setting the car up, what direction I should go when I had problems. So this is something that will definitely make us stronger next year.”
