Marko hails Perez transformation: 'He's working now!'

Helmut Marko says Sergio Perez has gone from being "a Mexican driver enjoying life" to a hard-working race winner since joining Red Bull Racing.

Perez scored his sixth career win in Formula 1 last Sunday in Azerbaijan, his second of the season, rounding off a weekend in which the Mexican also added a Sprint victory to his tally.

But perhaps more important was the fact that Perez triumphed on merit in Baku over Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen.

Admittedly, the Dutchman's race was impacted by an ill-timed pitstop, but Perez's consistent and superior pace allowed him to prevail, and to reduce his deficit to Verstappen in the Drivers' standings to just six points.

Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Marko declared himself impressed with Perez's display and warned that the Mexican is not to be underestimated, having undergone a big transformation since joining Red Bull in 2021.

"[Verstappen] was unlucky with the Safety Car, yes, but Sergio on a street circuit, he has the most podiums here," Marko said.

"So don't underestimate Sergio. He changed a lot since he came to us. He started working!"

• Read also: F1i's Driver Ratings for the 2023 Azerbaijan GP

Asked by Damon Hill if he was taking credit for Perez's change and success, the Red Bull motorsport boss said: "I'm not taking the credit!

"But, before, he was a Mexican race driver who was enjoying life. He still does, but he does the necessary work."

Last year, Perez became the first Mexican driver to win three F1 Grands Prix, surpassing the achievement of the late Pedro Rodriguez, an important milestone for the Red Bull charger according to Marko.

"Last year, he was looking at how many races were won by the Rodriguez brothers," said the Austrian.

"He is the most successful driver from Mexico now, and they have a long history and good drivers."

In Baku, Marko celebrated his 80th birthday, and while he was given several birthday cakes over the race weekend, he admitted that Perez's won was his favourite present.

"Very decent [present] and a proper one, not the ninth or 10th cake I got," he added. "Wherever I went – restaurant, bar, everywhere – a cake showed up!"

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