Pérez: The Malaysian Grand Prix was “boring”
Privileged spectator of the Malaysian race, Sergio Pérez explained, on the sidelines of the Bahrain Grand Prix, that he found the race to be not very lively and explained why it is challenging to fight on track with the 2014 version cars.
Sergio Pérez experienced the entire Malaysian Grand Prix as a spectator, following his withdrawal before the start due to a gearbox issue.
The opportunity for the Mexican to observe the 2014 version of Formula 1 with the eyes of the informed viewer. And he is not particularly more lenient than most observers and fans: « Malaysia, for me, was quite boring. It was a pretty boring race, with Mercedes dominating and nothing happening in the field. »
He explains that this situation is mainly related to the characteristics of the Malaysian track, particularly regarding tires: « In Malaysia, normally, if it doesn’t rain, there is a lot of tire degradation and cooling issues, so it’s difficult to follow the cars. » The tire degradation was exacerbated at Sepang this Sunday by a higher than expected temperature, which forced the drivers to be particularly cautious with their tires.
The Force India driver hopes that the race in Bahrain, which will be held at night for the first time in its history, will be more interesting: « But here, I hope we can see a good race. Generally, we have good races here, and people learn more about the cars. I hope, for the fans and the good of F1, that we can have a good show here. »
However, he already warns of the risk of encountering a scenario similar to the Malaysian Grand Prix: « Even if Pirelli brings really, really hard tires, the degradation isn’t really improved since you’re sliding and degrading the tires as much as if they were soft. So following another car is difficult. »
Overall, he points to the regulations and the inherent issues with the 2014 version cars: « With the lack of downforce, it’s tricky, so you have to be on a different strategy to gain a position, » he told Autosport.
The decrease in support level between 2013 and 2014 has increased the risk of error for drivers. This, combined with the choice of relatively soft tires, leads to a more delicate tire management: « Obviously, it’s easier to make a mistake, but the problem is that if you degrade your tires by sliding more and following a car, you lose a lot of downforce. »
In conclusion, the struggles are likely to be relatively limited from a certain point: « Therefore, it makes it more difficult to attack someone who is on a similar pace. »
