By joiner martinez
02 Sep 2023, 18:31 PM EDT
The Mexican Red Bull driver, Sergio Checo Pérez, second in the Formula One World Championship and who will start fifth this Sunday in the Italian Grand Prix, said at the Monza circuit that “it was not a great day”, but that he will do “what possible to come back”.
“We had an excellent Friday, but unfortunately Practice 3 affected us and we couldn’t prepare for qualifying. We got to qualifying with what we had learned yesterday and the track had changed a lot and we had a problem setting up and we paid the price in Q3, because we didn’t have the cleanest lap on this soft compound”, declared the Mexican after the session in Monza. where Carlos Sainz took pole position.
Pérez clarified that he will work on traction, to get the best out of the Monza chicanes, especially the first and second, which are very slow compared to the Ascari chicane. Despite everything he has experienced, he asserted that his mission is to be among the first three places, since he will fight directly with the Ferrari drivers.
“It will be important, especially the work on the rear tyres. Traction, left front and rear will be important for tomorrow. I’m aiming for the podium, Ferrari has been surprisingly strong and its pace is competitive, so it will be a good race and with confidence that it can be there”, stated Pérez.
George Russell, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz will start ahead of Checo this Sunday. The man from Guadalajara will share the third starting row with the Thai, Alex Albon, a Williams driver.
Helmut Marko was not surprised by Checo Pérez’s place
Helmut Marko, a Red Bull adviser, was not surprised by Checo Pérez’s fifth place in qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix, noting that the difference between the Mexican and Max Verstappen has been a constant throughout the season. .
Marko clarified: “The front row is good, our strength is in the race. And for the environment in Italy, this is optimal”.
“We knew that Ferrari would be strong and we prepared for that. We don’t necessarily go for pole in the set-up, it’s more important that we are good enough in the race”, he recounted.
During practice 3, Checo Pérez had a power unit oil leak that appeared on his Red Bull RB19.
Keep reading:
“It has been the best Friday in a long time”: Checo Pérez satisfied despite a scare at Monza [Video]
There is Checo Pérez for a while in Formula 1 before retirement: “I want to continue until at least 2026”
Helmut Marko continues his attacks against Sergio Pérez: “He thought he would be champion by beating Verstappen”