Sergio Perez has conceded that the 2023 F1 world title is out of reach, with the Mexican now trailing his Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen by 99 points in the championship.
Perez and Verstappen traded wins in the first four races of the season, but the Dutchman has been undefeated since Miami, the championship leader vying for a seventh consecutive win next weekend in Hungary.
Perez' championship ambitions took a massive blow at the Monaco Grand Prix, where he crashed in qualifying and failed to score points on race day.
Unfortunately, the Mexican's shortfall continued thereafter, with failures to reach Q3 in the subsequent four races, which inevitably put him on the back foot on Sundays.
In the interim, Verstappen continued his unrelenting forward march, leaving his teammate to defend his distant runner-up spot in the Drivers' standings.
"In Formula 1, only your position in Abu Dhabi matters," Perez told Spanish daily AS.
"But I am not second in the World Championship by a miracle, I have won races. I’ve had some bad races, but we have everything ahead of us.
"Target now? Undoubtedly the runner-up in the championship. But I’m only think about the Hungarian GP."
As he struggles to regain his form, Perez is at risk of falling into the clutches of his direct rivals in the championship, starting with third-placed man Fernando Alonso.
The Aston Martin driver, or rather his team, has impressed Perez.
"Fernando is a big surprise this year," commented Perez. "They have made a big step, but also McLaren in the last race. Everything is much closer with these rules."
Perez suggested that Spain was lucky to have two remarkable drivers – Alonso and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz – on the grid.
"And Carlos is a great driver, Fernando too," he added. "There is no reason to compare them, Spain should take advantage of and enjoy the great moment it is having because it may not be repeated in the history of Spanish motorsports."
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
