Sergio Perez insists he is pleased to have Daniel Ricciardo breathing down his neck at Red Bull – even if it means the pressure upon him has ramped up.
Red Bull are in the comfortable position of having three multi-race winners on the books this year. Defending champion Max Verstappen is again partnered by Perez, while Ricciardo has been re-signed as a reserve after he was let go by McLaren.
Verstappen won 15 races last year while the Mexican managed two further victories. That lop-sided balance of power – and signs of a rift between the drivers – has led to questions over whether Perez is the ideal candidate to partner the double champion.
Ricciardo is a popular figure among Formula 1 fans, many of whom will want to see him back on the grid as quickly as possible. Should Perez suffer a poor start to the season, or a bad patch in the middle of the year, then calls for him to be replaced by the Aussie may intensify.
Asked about that prospect by reporters including Mirror Sport, Perez only had positive things to say about his new colleague. He replied: "We are in a fantastic place to have Daniel, such an experienced driver who knows Red Bull from his time here. Although the car is very different to when he was here, it's still something he knows pretty well.
"We're really lucky to take advantage of him and the work he's going to be doing. In terms of pressure, it's always there – it doesn't matter if Daniel is here, or anyone. I'm a Red Bull driver, and when you're a Red Bull driver you have to deliver. It's no different to any other year."
Keen to back his drivers, team principal Christian Horner has repeatedly insisted there are no plans for a line-up change this year. Last week, he even went as far as to claim the Verstappen and Perez partnership is the best he has seen since the team was formed back in 2005.
"We're very lucky we got two fantastic drivers and you know their combined efforts the last two years have been stunning," he said. "That first drivers' world championship for Max in '21 and then the double championship last year and winning 17 Grands Prix between the two of them.
"First and third in in the drivers' championship and, of course, bringing home that constructors' championship back to Oracle Red Bull Racing for the first time in eight years. And, you know, these guys, I think it's the best pairing we've ever had in Formula 1. It's been hugely successful."
