Sergio Perez says he already has some ideas he’s been sharing with Red Bull Racing to take the team forward after few conversations and sim session.
Having made his official entry into the Red Bull F1 base at Milton Keynes, Perez not only completed his seat fit but also had couple of days at the simulator, to kick-start his learning programme. The Mexican will have no time to waste with limited test chances.
With just 1.5 days at hand along with a possible filming day run, Perez will not get a lot of running in the car before the start of the 2021 F1 season. But Red Bull is counting on his experience to get through the initial phase quickly, and be up to speed.
Perez seems to be making good progress already, as the Mexican says he has some ideas he is sharing with the F1 team to improve, from the conversations he has had and also the couple of simulator sessions he completed at Milton Keynes.
“First of all, I have to thank Red Bull for this tremendous opportunity,” started Perez, in an interview to Red Bull website. “From Mateschitz, Helmut, Christian, to put their trust in me, it means a lot for me and my family. I’m very thankful, and I think I can bring a lot of experience, knowledge.
“I’ve been in the sport, in different teams, in different eras and I think I know what I need from myself. But I also feel that I can push the team forward in certain areas, just by talking to the team and I think we know the direction. Obviously, I have to wait and drive the car, but there’s already some good ideas that we we’ve been sharing with the team that hopefully we can make some performance on track,” summed up Perez.
In terms of approach, Perez is taking it step by step. He knows the new surroundings will take some time, as the pressure and expectations will be quite different to what it was at Racing Point, but the Mexican feels he can get on top of it rather quickly.
“It’s very different in that it’s a new team,” said Perez. “There are so many things you have to learn and it just takes time. I will just get better and better knowing the team, them understanding what I mean. It just takes a bit of time, and putting all that work into it.
“I always spend time with my engineers, that’s the key, you know? Trying to speed up the process, I’ve had a couple days on the sim already; I have a good idea of what the Red Bull car is like to drive. We are in that time where nothing comes easy, when you have to learn and work to get up to speed with the car.
“It’s getting there, and it’s gonna be very limited testing this year with only a day and a half with the car. It’s very little, but it is what it is. There are a lot of drivers changing teams and it will be nice to see who develops the fastest in their new teams,” summed up Perez.
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