“Even Max Verstappen Couldn’t…”: Sergio Perez Faces the Ultimate Trial at Marina Bay to Prove Himself at Red Bull

Max Verstappen has dominated the F1 2023 season, as he has won 12 of the opening 14 races. The Dutchman has now registered 47 wins in his illustrious F1 career and has won on most circuits. However, there is one circuit that the 25-year-old has not yet managed to win at yet. That is the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore, which also turns out to be the venue for the next Grand Prix. If Red Bull are to extend their record-breaking run of having most victories in a row, either Verstappen or Sergio Perez will need to register a win at this venue. That’s exactly the challenge that Perez will now face-winning at a track where Verstappen hasn’t won yet.

The race in Singapore will be crucial for Perez, who has found it incredibly difficult to match Verstappen this season. While Verstappen has been dominating week in and week out, the Mexican has only managed to win two races this campaign despite having the fastest car on the current grid. However, the 33-year-old does seem to understand what he needs to win the Singapore Grand Prix.

A 10/10 performance today @redbullracing 🏆

To win 10 races in a row, and 15 consecutive races as a team, is unbelievable! 💪 I’m beyond proud to achieve this milestone together 👏

Today we will enjoy this moment and then we will keep pushing for more ☝

#ItalianGP pic.twitter.com/Cj8DPqmxzN

— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) September 3, 2023

Perez is of the opinion that pole position will be crucial in this race as he believes that it is difficult to overtake at this circuit. F1 expert Tom Clarkson also seemed to agree with Perez, admitting that the 33-year-old will need a strong qualifying session at Singapore to have any chance of winning.

Clarkson also believes that Perez needs a pole to win at Singapore

While analyzing Sergio Perez’s season so far, Tom Clarkson explained, on the most recent episode of the F1 Nation podcast, how the Mexican‘s race pace has never really been an issue this season. Clarkson noted that it is the 33-year-old’s qualifying form that has been thoroughly underwhelming.

Clarkson makes these remarks as there was a period this season, when Perez failed to qualify for Q3 for five race weekends in a row. Even though the former Racing Point driver has improved significantly in recent races, he has still been far off the pace compared to Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen.

This is one of the main reasons why Clarkson believes that Perez will have to be at his absolute best during the Singapore GP qualifying session. The F1 expert explained how it is particularly difficult to make progress at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore if a driver starts from further back on the grid.

He used the example of Verstappen to explain his point. “Just look at Max last year. Max Verstappen. He was up behind (Fernando) Alonso for a good portion of the race and came home in seventh place. Even Max Verstappen couldn’t make progress there, so you do need to qualify well“, explained Clarkson.

Clarkson then concluded his point by explaining how Perez’s “Achilles heel” has been his “overthinking“, and as a result he is closer to third place in the championship than to the leader. Hence, considering that Perez is a whopping 145 points behind his Red Bull teammate, he will now look to secure P2  in the standings.

Sergio Perez will hope to keep Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton behind

Even though Sergio Perez has a comfortable 49-point lead over third-placed Fernando Alonso and another six points over fourth-placed Lewis Hamilton, the Guadalajara-born driver knows that he cannot afford to make any mistakes moving forward if he wants to finish second in the championship. Moreover, both Alonso and Hamilton have expressed their optimism for the upcoming race in Singapore.

While speaking ahead of the Singapore GP, the Briton explained (as quoted by motorsport.com) how he expects Singapore to be a good race for Mercedes because of the use of high downforce at the Marina Bay Street Circuit. Similar to Hamilton, Alonso also explained how he expects Singapore to be a far better race for Aston Martin as compared to Monza.