Sergio Perez has pinpointed avoiding a repeat of the regression that thwarted his prospects last year as his “main priority” for the upcoming 2024 Formula 1 season.
Perez opened the previous campaign promisingly with two wins from the first four races to leave him only six points adrift of team-mate Max Verstappen at the top.
However, a crash in the opening stage of qualifying in Monaco prompted a torrid run that saw Perez fail to progress into Q3 on five consecutive occasions in his RB19 car.
The Mexican would eventually clinch second place in the Drivers’ standings but trailed a substantial 290 points behind Verstappen, who triumphed in 19 of the year’s 22 races.
Perez’s woes have placed him under intense pressure heading into his fourth season in Red Bull colours, particularly with his current contract set to expire at the end of this year.
Having outlined his ambition to compete for the title this season, Perez has accepted that he must avoid another drastic plight in form to challenge for the sport’s ultimate prize.
“I want to be able to achieve regularity, to build momentum,” he told car magazine AutoHebdo. “I think what we missed this year is progression.
“We started the year very high, tied with Max, but we were not able to progress throughout the season. We have sometimes even regressed.
“So I think that will be my main priority: to be able to progress throughout the season, whatever my starting point. It is important that, weekend after weekend, we continue to evolve and improve.”
However, the six-time grand prix winner is convinced that he has since understood his troubles and is optimistic that he can string together a more consistent season in 2024.
“I had a few bad weekends,” he conceded. “We started the year very strong in the first five or six races, but then we couldn’t progress with the car.
“This is something I missed and want to massively improve.
“The problems we had this year gave me a better understanding of what I was doing with the settings, how I was setting the car up, what direction I should go when I had problems. So this is something that will definitely make us stronger next year.”
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