Sergio Perez says Racing Point F1 Team expected low mileage at Barcelona in first 2019 F1 season test as the Mexican tries to predict the pecking order.
Racing Point was one of the three F1 teams which decided not to stage its shakedown before the first Barcelona test as the new team completed 248 laps in the four days which was the second worst with only Williams behind with 78 to their name.
While the team had some issues to tackle but on overall terms, Perez revealed that the idea was always for less running due to lack of parts at the current juncture. The Mexican added that the plan for Racing Point is to bring a big upgrade in Melbourne.
“I would [have] liked more mileage and more running but so far this is what we have got and we knew coming here, it would be difficult with mileages with the package we have at the moment,” said Perez to the media including FormulaRapida.net.
“We are just working flat out to try and dial-in the set-up with the work we are doing and hopefully we can get a lot better. [Also] we are having a massive package upgrade for Melbourne, so we are very limited on parts [now] like as in the past.
“We don’t want to risk it too much. The most important thing for us is to understand what’s going on with the balance and how we can make it better, how I can be more comfortable. I think on that regard we did a good step.”
For Perez, he can straightaway look on to gel with the car but for teammate Lance Stroll, it is not about getting on terms with the car, he will also have to get upto speed with the whole team and the environment, so as to eke out the best.
When asked about Stroll’s feedback, he termed it to be ‘very good’ as they now have to work together to help the engineers with the best possible set-up. At the same, Perez is wary of his competitors, especially in the midfield.
While not giving away too much, the experienced F1 campaigner feels the likes of Alfa Romeo, Renault and Toro Rosso aren’t slow anymore and expects a stiff challenge. “To be honest I haven’t looked at it [other teams] in detail,” he said.
“We are so focused on our thing and we know how testing can be sometimes – certainly there are some good surprises around. I think the midfield seems to be very tight but it is too early to say.
“[Coming into the test] I was expecting Alfa Romeo to be very strong in the midfield, the Renaults, the Toro Rossos and others, I think they are not slow teams anymore, any team can be a big surprise right now.”
Additional reporting by Arnau Vinales