A healthy tension can be anticipated between Pérez and his team-mate Button, a
decade his senior, given the British driver’s insistence to re-establish his
authority in the wake of Hamilton’s departure. So far, the noises are
flawlessly diplomatic.
“He is a very open guy,” Pérez said of the 2009 world champion. “If I ask
anything he is always honest and asks me a question as well, which I find
very impressive. Since my first day he has wanted to know about the car, how
it feels, what I think. He is a great champion and a good guy to work with.”
While Pérez can appear unusually slight in the flesh, he harbours a formidable
racing pedigree – both father Antonio and brother Sergio have raced at
national level in Mexico – and purports to have taken giant strides in his
physical conditioning.
“I have made an incredible step forward with my fitness,” he argued. “I have
definitely arrived in my best shape ever in my short career in F1.”
His priority turns now to translating these auspicious signs into a podium
finish in Australia. “I have not won a race yet and I am desperate to, but
when I go out there in Melbourne I will just drive normally – I will not
push and do crazy things to get the win at the very beginning. I need to
drive consistently and I need to score points. We need to have a lot of
consistency throughout the season.”
Pérez ’s inspired drive to second place at Sepang almost 12 months ago should
serve as the perfect motivation.
“It was a bit of a shock for everyone at Sauber,” he recalled. “For me as
well. It was a dream for the whole team – somehow we found ourselves
fighting for the win. We were right there, something we were not expecting.”
McLaren are trusting that such moments of inspiration can enable Pérez to keep
pace with the more experienced Button from the outset. The target appears
not to trouble him. “I expect a lot from myself,” he said, coolly. “Jenson
will be up there and I expect to be, too.”