Sergio Perez slates ODD Miami track as he trails title rival Verstappen

Miami Grand Prix

Sergio Perez slates ODD Miami track as he trails title rival Verstappen

It was a tough Friday for the Mexican as he struggled to get to grips with Miami

Graham Shaw Consultant Editor

Digital sports specialist running global brands for 30 years

Saturday 6 May 2023 08:55 Updated: 09:17

Sergio Perez was not a happy man after he ended Friday's practice for the Miami Grand Prix well adrift of Red Bull team-mate and F1 title rival Max Verstappen.

'Checo' ended FP2 in P4, almost half a second down on the flying Dutchman, and afterwards he provided reasons for his underwhelming pace.

Sergio Perez on Miami struggles

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Interviewed by Fox Sports, he explained: “I didn’t feel comfortable with the car today… during FP1 we tried in some different suspension parts that didn’t provide the improvement we were looking for, so we got back to the original ones.”

“The track feels just odd, there’s not enough grip, I don’t feel like I’m driving to my 100%… let’s hope tomorrow the track to have better conditions and helps to improve our situation.”

Perez has been terrific so far in 2023, winning two of the four races so far in Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan - again proving his stellar ability to excel on street circuits.

He trails Verstappen by just six points in the early-season standings after that win in Baku, but this weekend so far looks much more problematic for the 33-year-old Mexican star.