Perez no champion alongside Verstappen: 'Mature enough to realize that'

1 January 2023 at 18:10

Last update 1 January 2023 at 18:38

GPblog.com

Mexican Formula 1 driver Sergio Perez has meant a lot to Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen in winning two world championships. Although the Mexican has also had his own successes (four wins and third place in last year's overall championship ) David Coulthard thinks it will be no more than that.

The recipe for success always consists of different ingredients. Translated to Formula 1: many factors play a role in a team's successful performance. Examples include strategy, reliability, consistency, drivers, engineers, bosses, teamwork, etc. “[Red Bull] had the best package in racing, they made better strategic decisions. Reliability has played for them at the right part of the year," Coulthard says in the documentary Lion Unleashed 2.

No world champion

Perez has also played a vital role within the team's well-functioning dynamic, there is no denying that, but former F1 driver Coulthard believes the Mexican will never become world champion himself - at least not alongside Max.

“Checo, although he of course dreams of being world champion, of course he believes when everything is working, he has the pace to beat Max. He’s also mature enough to realize that it’s pretty difficult for him to beat Max over a season,” said the Scot.

At 32, Checo, as the driver's nickname goes, is at an age where one does still have potential to achieve great success in F1 (just look at Lewis Hamilton), but it has so far proved an impossible task for every driver placed alongside the Dutchman.