2009 Formula 1 world champion Jenson Button believes Sergio Perez would be seen as a serious championship contender if he wins this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.
Perez has made his best-ever start to an F1 season by winning two of the opening four races in 2023, putting him just six points behind Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen in the drivers’ standings.
He followed up his sprint race victory in Baku last weekend by beating Verstappen in a straight fight after leapfrogging him under the early safety car period.
It means Perez heads to Miami with the chance to lead the world championship for the first time in his career, and Button reckons another triumph early in the season would be a “massive deal” for the Mexican’s title aspirations.
“I am really impressed with Sergio. Max, he has to be the toughest team mate, because he just gets out there and gets it done in terms of his speed,” said Button, as quoted by RaceFans.
“I think [Perez] did a really good job at the weekend, and back-to-back wins if you like with the sprint race and the main event. That will give him a lot of confidence.
“I think we are only going to really know when we go to the next race. Kind of a street race as well: If he can pull out a win there, I mean that would be a massive deal for him. And I think that would give him confidence for the season.”
Button, who raced alongside Perez at McLaren in 2013, suggested he will need to perform consistently if he is to take the fight to Verstappen over the season.
“We haven’t seen him throughout the season obviously be as competitive as Max. Max is on it every weekend,” Button added.
“Lewis Hamilton: on it every weekend, pretty much. Maybe not so with the car this year. But that’s normally the way that they go racing, and that’s why they’re so difficult to beat over a season. Whereas Checo has been a lot more up-and-down.
“It’s much more difficult to win a championship like that when you’re up against Max. So I think the consistency is where Sergio has been lacking. The consistency to pull it out the bag. But if he can do it in Miami, I think he has a chance to fight for the championship.
“I didn’t think I’d be saying that, I really didn’t. But it’s great to see he’s got so much confidence in that car. And it’s good for the sport. We need it because the Red Bull obviously has an advantage at the moment.
“We need both them to be fighting. And I think Max is also like ‘fair play to Checo’. He’s done a really good job. So it adds to the title fight, we need it this season.”
Another of Button’s former team-mates Lewis Hamilton is surrounded by speculation as to whether he will sign a new deal with Mercedes.
Hamilton has hinted he will continue to race in F1 beyond this year and Button is convinced the seven-time world champion is “hungry” to win a record eighth drivers’ crown.
“I don’t think Lewis is going to walk away from the sport,” said Button. “I think as a racing driver, you have two things. One is you’re winning for so long and then you’re suddenly not, you want to fight back to winning. So you’re not going to retire.
“And then you can come at it the other way. If you’ve been in a in a bad car, you want to retire. If you’ve been there for many years in a bad car. Because it just gets you down.
“Lewis is not in a bad car. He’s in a car that’s not as good as what he’s used to. I get that. But I think he knows the strength of the team, he knows how quick he is still, so I think he’s going to work with this team to get back to fighting with Red Bull. And I think they will.
“It probably won’t be this year, but 2024, I think we’ll see Lewis Hamilton on the grid. I think he’s still hungry. He’s still hungry to win another world championship.”
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