“Thank God he finished ahead of Alonso” - Sergio Perez‘s Red Bull seat is not in danger according to Helmut Marko

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko remarked that he was relieved with Sergio Perez finishing ahead of Fernando Alonso at the 2023 British Grand Prix on Sunday, July 9.

Starting from P16, it was a tough race for the Mexican as he was unable to make the progress that everyone expected from him. But he caught a lucky break as the Safety Car was brought out in the later half of the race, giving him the chance to leapfrog many of his competitors and finish the race in P6, ahead of the Aston Martin driver Alonso (P7).

Speaking with Sky Sports Germany, the 80-year-old Austrian said of Sergio Perez:

"Thank God he finished ahead of Alonso and extended his advantage. That's our target. In the last 10 laps, he was the fastest driver on the track, and that was on soft tyres. His position is not in danger at all."

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Sergio Perez analyzes his British GP performance after P6 finish

The Red Bull driver acknowledged that it was a challenging race for him, as he had a forgettable start after getting stuck behind Estaban Ocon.

As per F1.com, he said:

"I gave it my all today but I was expecting a bit more. We had a bad start and then I got stuck with Esteban Ocon, had to go wide and ended up losing a few positions at the start. From there on I made progress slowly and recovered a few places, but it took me longer to come through the field than I would have liked. We also pitted a few laps before the safety car which was unfortunate. Tomorrow, I am going to be working with the Team in the simulator."

"We have some ideas on what we can improve on and I am confident that this will help us work through it. I have full support from the team, I’m mentally very strong and I know that I will overcome these issues and turn around my season. The pace is there and I can still get back to where I should be. I am looking forward to Hungary and getting back on good form," he added.

The Red Bull team principal, Christian Horner, did praise Sergio Perez, saying:

"Equally, Checo found fine form today. Some of his moves in the race exemplify exactly how skilful he is as a driver, particularly on Carlos into Stowe and his pace in the last stint meant he was right there. Its frustrating for him that he has had to fight back after qualifying in recent races but he is finding his form and will find it further in Budapest."

It will be interesting to see if Sergio Perez will be on the same footing as Max Verstappen in Hungary in a couple of weeks' time.