Lewis Hamilton once teamed up with an unlikely ally on a cold night in December. The ally was none other than the Red Bull star Sergio Perez, the recent winner of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and the man of the hour in Formula 1.
According to a video that resurfaced on the internet recently, it showed the Mercedes star was accompanied by the former Racing Point driver in a nightclub. It is believed that the footage is from 2020 and was taken after the conclusion of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Perez’s first day at Red Bull #F1 pic.twitter.com/l36NTO0k9z
— Adam Winch (@AdamWinch_) December 17, 2020
As the party animal Hamilton who donned a red and white chequered hoodie with a black cap welcome Perez, the crowd went into ruptures. The Mexican arrived on the scene wearing a black shirt and actively participated with the seven-time world champion.
The Briton with a mike in his hand shouted, “Checoooooooo!“, following this, it was the Red Bull star’s turn who screamed “Whoooa!” with a whoop of delight. After this, Hamilton, who interestingly acted as the DJ, exclaimed with joy, “Checo is in the house,” and they both smiled.
From going out of the sport to reigning F1, Perez has come a long way
Back in 2020, when Sebastian Vettel signed a switch from Ferrari to Racing Point [now Aston Martin], Checo‘s run in F1 almost came to an end. With no seat available for the Mexican in F1, there seemed to be a dead end for him.
But the win in Sakhir Grand Prix changed Perez’s fortune. He was at the back of the pack at some point. From there on, he went on to win the Grand Prix and Red Bull immediately took notice of this.
Checo will never forget this moment #SakhirGP 🇧🇭 #F1 pic.twitter.com/RI3R5oTAdN
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 6, 2020
Following the season’s end, the Austrian team has come up with an opportunity for Sergio Perez. As the 33-year-old joined the Milton-Keynes-based team alongside Max Verstappen, he has added five more wins to his tally, most recently in Baku.
Sergio Perez cleared to race against Verstappen
In the latest development, Christian Horner has waved a green flag for Perez to go wheel-to-wheel racing against the Dutchman. This has come right after the Mexican’s win in Baku, which put him a lot closer to the defending world champion.
When asked if there’s a team order in Red Bull, the boss explained that so far there’s no order. It’ll remain this way until the higher-ups feel that the drivers are putting their interests before the team.
With the recent win in Azerbaijan, the 33-year-old picked up his second victory of the season. After four races in 2023, Verstappen and Perez are separated by just six points.
