Sergio Perez hopes ‘anything can happen’ at Mexican Grand Prix after feeling disappointed by his progress in qualifying.
The Red Bull driver received support from his home crowd throughout practice at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, with cheers regularly ringing out from the stands as he entered the circuit.
However, after a fifth-place finish, Perez believes he could have done more in terms of progression during the hour, which came after a day on Friday that proved no simple feat.. as simple as that.
When asked what he thought about qualifying after the end of Q3, Pérez admitted that there were “very good margins”.
“I think the progress we made in qualifying wasn’t great, especially in Q3,” he said.. “We lost a third in Q2, we put an out lap on it and just the progression in Q3, I felt like it could have been quite a lot better.”
Perez is known for his skill at managing tyres, something that could prove useful at the high altitude track, and he remains positive about what he could potentially achieve on Sunday.
“Tomorrow there is a long race ahead, so anything can really happen,” the six-time Grand Prix winner explained.. “It will be an interesting one, and let’s see what we are able to do.”
Racing in front of his home crowd often seems to have proved successful for Perez, with the Mexican having scored a podium result in the last two races held at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.
In terms of the 2023 season, Perez last claimed victory in Azerbaijan back in April and has been without a top three result since the Italian Grand Prix in September.
He remains in P2 of the drivers’ championship, currently holding a 39-point advantage over Lewis Hamilton in third.