Checo Pérez starts with a soft band; their direct rivals with the average in Imola
The Mexican Sergio Checo Pérez achieved his best F1 qualifying at the Imola Grand Prix by finishing second with a time of 1: 14.446, only behind Lewis Hamilton who took pole position for the Emilia Romagn Grand Prixa.
Checo Pérez surprised on the second day of the activities and only managed to place himself behind the world champion, which has a time of 1: 14.411. The tapatío managed to move up to Q3 after his stay in Bahrain, where he was eliminated in Q2. It is not the first time that he has qualified second, he did it in Azerbaijan in 2016. That time, however, he was sanctioned and lost the front row of the grid. Until this note appears, the RB16B has not been sanctioned for any technical reason, so this will officially be his best starting position in F1.
Checo finished sixth in the first batch with 1: 15.395. While Vertappen took fourth position 1: 15.109.
In the second qualifying round, Pérez achieved 1: 14.716, placing himself in first place of the standings and ahead of the young Lando Norris, who was only 0.002 thousandths slower than Checo.
The afternoon’s third place in Emilia Romagna went to Max Verstappen – Checo beating the young Dutchman in his second Red Bull race was not something many had predicted.
The negative point of Sergio Pérez for this weekend at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari starts with the soft compound, as this would give him a shorter time on the track during his first stint – although on the other hand it is Checo Pérez, a rider who stood out for his management of the rubber.
But not everything is negative when starting with the softer tire, as with this Checo he will be able to chase Hamilton with a good start and the fastest tire in the first laps. However, if Pérez fails to pass Lewis at the starting point, each lap gets more complicated due to the increased wear on the rubber – which also deteriorates faster if you follow the trail of another car.
An interesting start to the competition takes place in Imola, where the two Red Bulls – in different strategies – fight against the world champion. Since Mexico 2018, Red Bull no longer had its first two cars in the first three starting positions.
Pérez will try to get on the podium after his presentation at that circuit in 2020, where he finished sixth after starting 11th with Racing Point – it would be his first at RB.
The race in Italy will take place at 8:00 a.m. Central Mexico time.
Checo Pérez is in fifth position in the F1 drivers’ world championship with 10 points.