Perez reflects on 'tricky' Friday, but still hopes to end year on high
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It was a tough day for Sergio Perez and Red Bull on the final Friday of the year in Abu Dhabi. Both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez struggled to find the right set-up for their RB20s. Despite finishing 14th, Sergio Perez believes that he can still finish the season on a high as Red Bull's long-run pace appears to be more promising.
Perez had a difficult Friday in Abu Dhabi:
"It was tricky. Over one lap, it's quite tricky. I think we've got some work to do. I think, in the long run, it's a lot more promising. But, yeah, over one lap, we need to find and try and connect the car. We've been trying a lot of stuff out there, but it's just not coming together at the moment," the Mexican explained to Sky Sports.
Despite Perez's 2024 results, the Mexican is still hoping to finish the season on a high. It's been a tough year for 'Checo' in the Red Bull. Max Verstappen's teammate has scored just 152 points this season compared to the Dutchman's 429 points. Perez is also the only driver from the top four teams not to win a race this season.
Car is not 'tremendously bad':
"Yeah, it's just, I mean, the car is not feeling tremendously bad at the moment. We are just slow over one lap. So, yeah, some work to do there. The car feels very different when we go with fuel, so... Yeah." Perez concluded, expressing hope that the RB20 will perform better in its final race.
For teammate Max Verstappen, the day did not go much better, and he finished even further down in P17. Verstappen complained about the balance, among other things, but does expect Red Bull to make a move forward from Friday to Saturday.
This article was written in collaboration with Nicole Mulder
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