Perez sees invisible star at Red Bull: 'Works really hard'.

Max Verstappen in fact dominated the race in Azerbaijan but went off a few laps before the end with a blowout. "What Verstappen did in Baku was great to see. He deserved that win and drove a flawless race. It was mostly an unlucky race from him. This was his victory."

He also praised Alexander Albon, his predecessor and now test driver for Red Bull. "He works so hard in the simulator. You wouldn't expect him to be so open towards me. He helped me in the beginning by explaining the problems he had with the material and how the machine works. It was very nice to hear that from him and to work with him from day one. All the people together have made it possible for us to be where we are now," the Mexican said.

Perez on Baku GP restart

Once Max was out of the race, Perez was suddenly in P1. On the restart, he knew Hamilton would be on the inside.

"I had everything to lose there. It was only two laps left, I was on pole, so only we could lose that race. I tried to start perfectly and somehow it didn't work out. That was lucky in hindsight, because what if we had had a good start and Hamilton didn't have problems with his brakes." Hamilton did have a problem, however, allowing Perez to finish the last few laps and cross the line as the winner in Baku.