Perez aims for victory: 'Winning is the goal at a front row start'

Sergio Perez - unlike teammate Max Verstappen - is aiming for victory in Belgium this afternoon. The Red Bull Racing driver faces only Charles Leclerc at the start and has some back-up behind him from Lewis Hamilton before the McLarens will come storming in.

How confident is the Mexican going into the race? "I think we have got a good chance today. Obviously, it's going to be a pretty long race ahead of us, so it will be an interesting battle out there. I think, like always, the front is so tight. You have three, four teams that are going to be really close together. So strategy will come into play."

The RB20 seems very fast in the second sector, faster than any team. In sectors one and three, McLaren seems to have a bit more of an advantage based on Friday's longruns. On top of that, their top speed also seems to be a bit higher, although Perez is not very worried about that. "I don't think we are that slow in the straights either. So I think yesterday we were on par with the with the people around us so we will see in the dry where everyone is at."

Perez has been dry for a while

The 34-year-old driver's last win dates back to Baku 2023, more than a year ago. Will Perez pick up his seventh F1 win today? "As always, when you're starting the front row, the target is to win it. But it's a very long race ahead of us."

This article was written in collaboration with Sophia Crothall.