Sergio Perez has brushed aside suggestions that he was retained by Red Bull solely because he makes a supportive and unchallenging teammate for Max Verstappen.
Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, expressed in Montreal that Perez plays the clear role of a 'number 2' driver, akin to how Michael Schumacher's former teammates like Eddie Irvine or Rubens Barrichello functioned.
When prompted by RTBF to reflect on being labeled a comfortable number 2 to appease Verstappen, Perez responded in Canada: "The only thing that interests me is to close the visor and do everything in my power to do my career to the best of my ability.
"When I retire, that's the only thing that will matter to me - not what people thought of me. Everyone has their own opinion," he further elaborated.
While Verstappen secured a front-row start at the Canadian Grand Prix, Perez did not advance beyond Q1. "It's not the car," Dr. Helmut Marko, Red Bull's F1 consultant, commented to Servus TV.
"You can see that with Max. I think it's more psychological. When the conditions change, it is much more difficult for Perez, but the fact that it is already the third time that he is not in Q3 is painful."
However, it's clear that Red Bull's overall dominance has waned. Both McLaren and Ferrari have clinched race victories in 2024, and now Mercedes' George Russell has taken pole position in Montreal.
"I think that when we get back to a track with a lot of cornering speed, then Red Bull Racing will be very strong again, for example in Spain," Mercedes technical boss James Allison was quoted by Speed Week. "But from the looks of things, their latest upgrade to the car was more of a downgrade, so let's keep our fingers crossed that they screwed it up badly.
"When you no longer trust your own tools, you have to backtrack and you can't afford that in Formula 1," he added.
Triple world champion Verstappen concurs that Red Bull is currently struggling. "Absolutely. Things are just not going well at the moment," he told NOS in Canada, noting not only Mercedes' enhanced performance but also technical setbacks on his car in practice.
"I think we try to keep a close eye on everything, but sometimes you have a moment in the year when things are not going well with all kinds of small problems. At the moment we don't seem to be able to stop it," he concluded.
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