---
title: "Sergio Perez at 300: From Sauber outsider to Mexican F1 icon"
canonical: "https://readmotorsport.com/2026/10/29/sergio-perez-300-f1-starts-mexico-career/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Gary Gowers"
section: "Mexico - Mexico City"
published: "2026-10-29T11:20:20Z"
modified: "2026-10-29T11:20:20Z"
---

# Sergio Perez at 300: From Sauber outsider to Mexican F1 icon

**Sergio Perez will make his 300th F1 start in front of his home crowd at Sunday’s Mexico City Grand Prix, 15 years after beginning a career he admits exceeded even his own expectations.**

The Cadillac driver will move above Sebastian Vettel into seventh on the all-time list of [F1](https://readmotorsport.com/latest-f1-news/) starts at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Perez has recorded six wins, 39 podiums and three pole positions since making his debut with Sauber in 2011, while his latest milestone comes days after Cadillac secured his future until at least 2029.

## Perez’s road to 300 F1 starts

Perez first attracted attention with Sauber, notably challenging Fernando Alonso for victory in Malaysia in 2012, before earning a move to McLaren the following season. That opportunity lasted just one year, but Perez rebuilt his reputation during seven seasons with Force India and Racing Point before finally claiming his maiden victory at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.

Perez had dropped to the back following a first-lap collision but recovered to win at his 190th attempt. It proved particularly significant because he was without a drive for the following season.

Red Bull offered him another opportunity at the front of the grid, and Perez added five victories, including Monaco in 2022, while helping the team win successive constructors’ titles. He also finished runner-up to Max Verstappen in the 2023 drivers’ championship.

His four-year spell with Red Bull ended after a difficult 2024 season, leaving Perez out of [F1](https://readmotorsport.com/latest-f1-news/) for a year before Cadillac brought him back for its debut campaign in 2026.

“I came up to F1 with nothing, and now I’m a dad of four kids,” Perez told F1.com while reflecting on his career. “Not even in my best dreams could I have imagined having such a successful career.”

The 36-year-old also recalled watching Rubens Barrichello celebrate his 300th Grand Prix and wondering whether he could ever achieve the same milestone. Perez will now do it with his own family present and thousands of Mexican supporters in the grandstands.

Cadillac have yet to score a point in their first season, but Perez’s experience and technical feedback have impressed the team enough to secure him until at least 2029. His 300th start therefore represents another landmark rather than the beginning of a farewell.

Fifteen years after arriving with Sauber, Perez heads into his home Grand Prix with his place among F1’s longest-serving drivers secured – and another chapter of his career, maybe, still to come.

***For the latest Formula 1 stories, driver news and updates from across the racing world, follow all the [motorsport news](https://readmotorsport.com/news/) on Read Motorsport.***

*Source: Formula 1*