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Sergio Perez is ignoring all the speculation surrounding his future at Red Bull after a series of disappointing race weekends, at least he claims to. Speaking to the on-site media after the British GP in Silverstone, the Mexican driver said that he had the team’s support when it came to his performances.
Asked if he was bothered by all the speculation surrounding his future, Perez said:
“Yeah, fully. I couldn't care less if I'm honest about that. I've been in F1 13 years, and I've seen it all. Not worried about any of that. I'm mainly focused on getting my season on track, and making sure I keep enjoying this. Yeah, I have full support from Helmut and Christian. The whole team is fully backing me, and they know what I can do. They know my potential, and they are fully behind me.”
A mid-season twist, where Daniel Ricciardo has replaced Nyck De Vries at AlphaTauri has led to further speculation. The Australian driver, who lost his place after two difficult seasons at McLaren, returned to Red Bull to reinvent himself.
The former Red Bull driver recently did a Pirelli test where his timings are rumoured to be on par with the front row at the British GP. Given the Mexican occupies his former seat, Ricciardo is being speculated as a potential replacement for Perez.
Sergio Perez explains his performance woes after the British GP
Sergio Perez believes that he has become sensitive to the RB19, particularly when it is on low fuel mode on Saturdays. Unable to make it into Q3 for six race weekends out of 10 so far, the Mexican racer says he is trying to iron out his qualifying troubles.
He feels that the mixed weather conditions in the last few race weekends have added to his miseries. Perez was out of Q1 itself at the British GP and had his lap-time deleted for violating track limits in Austria.
Explaining his qualifying performance issues, Sergio Perez said:
“I think it's just the amount of detail. I have become a little bit more sensitive to the car in the last few races, especially on Saturday, when on low fuel. It's something that I’m going be working [on] already from tomorrow in the simulator with the team. And we have some ideas. But we operate in such a small window of detail.
"It’s just that we need a strong Saturday. And the positive thing is that the pace is there on Sundays, at the end of the day, the points are given. But we just have to sort out and have a clean weekend because the pace is there. I think it's with my driving, how I'm approaching the Saturdays, how we're doing it as a team, we just have to figure it out.”
He added:
“The last qualifyings that I've had bad, they've been on changeable conditions, and it's where a lot of detail comes in play. So I'm not too concerned. I think we had a great Friday in terms of pace. We just have to sort out the qualifying, and we'll be fine.
"We're making progress, because the pace is there on Sundays. But it's just the whole weekend overall. We’ve had a few bad weekends. But at the end of the day, it only matters where we finish in Abu Dhabi. So, it's a long season still, and I fully believe that I can get my season back on track.”
Currently second in the driver’s championship, Sergio Perez is trailed very closely by Fernando Alonso, who is 19 points behind him. The Red Bull driver has been unable to snatch the championship lead from Max Verstappen or defend his second place.
With the midfield bunching up with Aston Martin, Mercedes, and McLarens in the mix, the next few races will be critical for the Mexican. He is currently 90 points behind the Dutchman in the championship, a gap widening with every race weekend.
