Sergio Perez closed to within six points of Red Bull team-mate and world championship leader Max Verstappen by winning the Azerbaijan GP; Watch the Miami GP exclusively live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend, starting with Practice One at 6:30pm on Friday
Friday 5 May 2023 06:10, UK
Sergio Perez says that it is important for him to understand Max Verstappen's "weaknesses" after igniting a 2023 Formula 1 title race by outperforming his Red Bull team-mate at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Perez's victories in both the first Sprint of the season in Baku and Sunday's race left him just six points behind Verstappen going into this weekend's Miami Grand Prix, with Red Bull's stunning pace likely to set up another intra-team contest in the United States.
Verstappen, who is chasing a third successive drivers' title, has comfortably outperformed Perez in their previous two seasons as team-mates, but with the pair having taken two wins apiece in the opening four races of the 2023 campaign Perez believes he can sustain a challenge.
"Well obviously, when you win the race on pure pace, you've done better than your team-mate," Perez said on Thursday in Miami.
"And I'm sure that Max and his team are going to have a look at that and make sure they understand, and that's why it's important from our side that we are able to understand those weaknesses."
Perez appeared to be the faster of the Red Bulls on Sunday in Baku as he closed on Verstappen on the opening stint, before being gifted the lead as the timing of a Safety Car worked out in his favour.
However, having had time to reflect on the data from the weekend, Perez is confident he would have been able to pass his team-mate on track if necessary.
"I think I had the pace on Sunday in Baku to win the race," Perez said.
"I think on that first stint, on that lap if he wouldn't have pitted, I mean you never know, but I was quite close on the DRS and he was struggling already on the tyres - so I think I would have got him."
It was clear in Baku that both Verstappen and Perez were flat out on the second stint, with multiple taps of the barriers for both drivers evidence of their all-out approach.
Perez has praised the team for allowing the pair to battle it out, which was also the case in the second race of the season in Saudi Arabia, but admitted the approach could have "easily" gone wrong.
"I do believe that the team will give me as much support as they do with Max, and it's what they've been doing pretty much since the start of the season, so in that regard I think we have to appreciate that a lot from Red Bull," he said.
"It would be very easy for Red Bull to implement team orders on lap 20 and look after the cars and make sure we have very reliable cars, but no, in Jeddah and in Baku we pushed flat out throughout the race.
"In Baku we hit the wall a few times, both drivers, and that was only because we were so much on the limit. It went right, but it could easily be damage and we have a problem."
Verstappen, who was magnanimous in defeat in Baku, played down the intra-team battle, pointing to the fact that there is still a long way to go in what is a 23-race campaign.
"What helps is that we have the dominant car so worst case normally you finish second, best case you finish first," Verstappen said.
"It's harder of course to also create a bigger gap. Checo has always been very good in Baku and for me personally it's probably the other way around, I don't really enjoy driving there so much. Sometimes it just doesn't really suit your style as much,
"For sure Checo has had a great start to the season, he's always working as hard as he can to do the best possible job and he did an amazing job in Baku so you have to acknowledge that as well.
"I've been in this position before in 2021 and last year I had to catch up a lot because of the misfortune and it's all about putting these performances in day in day out and of course with the car we have you cannot afford big mistakes. It's a long season, a lot of things can happen."
Both Verstappen and Perez are confident their relationship, which soured - most notably in Brazil - last season, can be maintained throughout a potential title duel.
"Between us we have a good understanding, a good relationship so I think what we want to focus on is to make the car better and faster to try and stay ahead of everyone else," Verstappen said. "That's the main objective and then the rest you will do on the track anyway."
Perez is confident the "respect" between the pair will ensure they continue to be allowed to race each other.
"I think the level of respect between Max, myself, the engineers is pretty high," Perez said. "Although people might think differently, but it's extremely high.
"I'm sure that the team feels super confident to let us race as hard as we've been doing."
Friday
6.30pm: Miami GP Practice One (session starts 7pm)
8.30pm: The F1 Show: Miami
10.15pm: Miami GP Practice Two (session starts 10.30pm)
Saturday
5.15pm: Miami GP Practice Three (session starts 5.30pm)
8pm: Miami GP Qualifying build-up
9pm: Miami GP Qualifying
10.45pm: Ted's Qualifying Notebook
Sunday
7pm: Grand Prix Sunday Miami GP build-up
8.30pm: THE MIAMI GRAND PRIX
10.30pm: Chequered Flag Miami GP reaction
11.30pm: Ted's Notebook
The Formula 1 season continues with the Miami GP this weekend. Watch qualifying at 9pm on Saturday with lights out at 8.30pm on Sunday. Get Sky Sports
