![Red Bull F1 leader ‘Perez cannot challenge Verstappen'[F1-Gate.com]](https://i0.wp.com/f1-gate.com/media/img2022/20221205-redbull-f1-perez.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1 "Red Bull F1 leader ‘Perez cannot challenge Verstappen'[F1-Gate.com]")
Red Bull F1 motorsport adviser Helmut Marko has questioned Sergio Perez’s 2023 F1 title ambitions, saying no driver in the team could challenge Max Verstappen.
Sergio Perez is looking for an F1 title challenge next year after suffering convincing defeats to Max Verstappen over the past two years.
Max Verstappen won back-to-back titles in 2021 and 2022, winning 25 of 44 races (57%) during that span.
Sergio Perez, on the other hand, scored three victories for Red Bull in the same period.
Helmut Marko highlights Sergio Perez’s ability to challenge Max Verstappen in some events but says he won’t see him all season.
“The Czech can definitely win a race or two,” Helmut Marko told Bild.
“But right now I don’t think he can challenge Max all season. I don’t think anyone in general can do that right now.”
Sergio Perez has two wins in 2022. He has won street events in Monaco and Singapore.
Red Bull Racing enjoyed a dominant campaign, winning 17 races into the season and taking both championships.
However, it was a triumph after coming out of the 2022 season opener with multiple reliability issues.
“We want to be just as dominant in 2023. There is always room for improvement, even if it is very difficult,” said Helmut Marko.
“We have to improve on the reliability side. In the first three races we retired three times due to technical shortcomings”.
“The set-up wasn’t right in Brazil. We had an outstanding season, but not everything was perfect.”
“We still need a perfect day to beat Mercedes and Ferrari.”
