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Sergio Perez is confident that he will be able to challenge Max Verstappen for the world championship in the 2023 F1 season. Though the Mexican was nowhere near Verstappen last season, he believes that he has the potential and the support of Red Bull to fight for the top spot this season.
At the end of the 2022 F1 season, Sergio Perez revealed his objective: to fight for the world title and win one in the next two years. Although he admits that Max Verstappen is the fastest driver on the grid at the moment, he feels that the gap can be reduced.
The Mexican driver said:
"The objective is to improve what has been done this season and fight for the championship. That is my biggest dream in Formula 1, and that's why I'm still here, I hope that in the next two years I can become a champion. Verstappen is the best driver at the moment, but I know that I can close the gap between the two and fight for the title."
Sergio Perez recalled some failures from last season and aimed to focus on consistency in the future. Defeating Max Verstappen is not an easy task, but the Mexican believes that his side of the team can help him do so. He also pointed out how the cars will have a similar level of performance, which might give him an advantage over other drivers. The Red Bull driver said:
"I had a couple of bad races that really took me out of contention for the championship (during 2022), so there is work to be done in that regard, together with the team. We need to make sure that we can keep that consistency at all times and that we can start the year well to be able to challenge for the title if we had a similar level of car for next year."
Max Verstappen shares hectic behind the scene schedule of F1 drivers
Max Verstappen recently revealed how F1 drivers have a hectic schedule throughout the race weekend. Apart from driving and giving interviews, there is a lot more on their schedule.
Speaking to Speedweek, Verstappen explained:
"The most important meeting is the team meeting in the morning. That can take 90 minutes. If everything goes smoothly, this meeting will be over in half an hour. Basically, we go through the whole day. Then, of course, there are performances for the sponsors. We have a lot to do."
He further added:
"The drivers meet with the race control in the evening after the first two free practice sessions. We sometimes go into events from the past grand prix. Or we talk about the safety issues of the track. Here, too, the range is large. I've sat in meetings that were over in ten minutes. If a discussion arises, it can turn into an hour and a half."
From team meetings to drivers' meetings with race control and other departments of the sport, a single race weekend is extremely heavy on F1 drivers.
