By Josh Kruse

Interview conducted on the Thursday before the Azerbaijan Grand Prix

mahbx.com:
Hi Sergio, t🔥his is the best start to a season for you so far, what do you think has made it successful?

Sergio Perez:
I think the team. When I look back, I remember the start of the season we were probably one of the slowest teams in the field, and we still managed to achieve great results. Since then we have developed the car and so on, now we are one of the forces in the fiel🐬d, so I'm really happy and confident about the start of the season. Still, there's 12 or so races to go, so there's a long way to go.

mahbx.com:
What do 🧸you 🐽think has made the difference? Momentum from last year maybe?

Sergio Perez:
Yeah, I think being with the team for so long it definitely helps the con🍒fidence, helps the environment and that makes things a lot easier and a lot better for us.

mahbx.com:
What is your goal personally for the end of this season🐠?

Sergio Perez:
To have maximised🌼 every single weekend, to have maximised every opportunit💯y that the team gives me, and if I do that I'll be happy.

mahbx.com:
No particular posi𝔉tion in mind? Just maximiꦕsing weekends?

Sergio Perez:
Just to maximise, because you never know how the season will unf♕old and e💜volve for the next races.

mahbx.com:
Given your recent form has been really good, have any top teams been in contacﷺt with you?

Sergio Perez:
No, not so far. I think it's still early in the season, but I certainly think that I've been doing a good job. We'll🌞 see if that phone call comes!

mahbx.com:
Go💮ing away from current F1 and back to y🌺our early days, what was your first memory of motorsport?

Sergio Perez:
Probably watching my first race with my Dad. It was actually when ꦉAyrton had his accide👍nt and died, that was my first race. I was quite young, that's my first memory of motorsport.

mahbx.com:
So what made you choose to get into a go kart?

Sergio Perez:
Yeah I was quite young, and I just started in karting to have fun, and once I realised it was getting a lot more professio⭕nal for me, since then it's been step by step, but it's great to look back.

mahbx.com:
How old were you when you first hopped into a kart, and how old when you 🐷beg🔯an racing?

Sergio Perez:
I was sixꦓ when I first started karting, 🐲and then at the age of 11 was when I started to really do it professionally.

mahbx.com:
How did you mix your racing career with school? Obviously, it's a struggle ཧfor most 🐻drivers...

Sergio Perez:
It's very difficult, you know in this business, especially for me coming from Mexico I had to go to Europe at the age of 15. It's been hard to leave all of your family and all of your friends, all your childhood in your country, it's not easy. You have🐬 to cope with it and 🐻give it your best shot, and try to follow your dreams.

mahbx.com:
What were your best and worst subjects?

Sergio Perez:
I always did well on the training side and that kind of thing, football, I've always been a sporty guy since I was young. Probably the worst I'm not sure, I just didn't love school, so I was never goodꦗ at doing homework!

mahbx.com:
What was the hardest part about moving to Europe, aside from leaving your family? Were 🍷there extra challenges that you were faced with that were different to Mexi🎉co?

Sergio Perez:
Definitely, not having your people around you, w𓂃hen you have a free day basically I was all on my own. There's not a lot to do, very lonely days, you know? After the♛ weekend of racing I was quite lonely and that was the hardest part for me.

mahbx.com:
So no one came over with you?

Sergio Perez:
It was just me.

mahbx.com:
What do you think you might be doing i🐼f you weren't an F1 driver🌌?

Sergio Perez:
Something rel꧙ated to sport I think. I quite like sport, trying to help out the athletes or something.

mahbx.com:
Your season with McLaren, you keep saying that it was a big learning experience, what exactly did you learn that you implement into your driving todaꦏy?

Sergio Perez:
I t🌠hink I've always had speed since I came to Formula 1. But knowing why you are quick and why you are slow, what happens weekend after weekend, makes a huge difference to your season and to your career in Formula 1.

That's somethi🎃ng I figured out what went wrong and I analysed really carefully what happened at my time with Mc꧒Laren, why it went so wrong.

Firstly, it was because we h𒉰ad a really bad car, secondly because my experience was not as it is now, I was not so analytical. So that side improved a lot. Now, I understand why I'm quick, why I'm slow, and why I have to do things to be quick. When I have a problem, I'm getting out of it quicker than the past, so I think that has improved a lot.

mahbx.com:
Is that down to experience or does that maybe come෴ with ag❀e?

Sergio Perez:
I think it🅰's experience. Experience and probably not having the right guidance at the 🌳time.

mahbx.com:
What do you like to do to get away 🐭from Formula 1 and relax?

Sergio Perez:
I try to separate my life a lot from my profession. It's not easy, I always keep thinkin🅰g, but once I leave I always try to be a normal man after here. I like to play football, I'm just a 27-year-old boy, if I'm at home or in Europe or wherever, I try to do normal stuff, follow my routines, my job, but I try to be as normal as possible and that helps me to forget that I'm a Formula 1 ꦰdriver.

mahbx.com:
Favourite movie?

Sergio Perez:
Man on fire.

mahbx.com:
Favourite music?

Sergio Perez:
Mexican pop.

mahbx.com:
What was the first "treat yourself" present you bought when you became an established rꦛacing🐈 driver?

Sergio Perez:
A watch, I🌃 always buy watches when a certain important occas♉ion for me happens. Because I like to keep that memory with me.

mahbx.com:
So you would have a few watches by now?

Sergio Perez:
Yeah, I have a couple of watches with me that represents somethiꩵng.

mahbx.com:
What was the first one you remember buying?

Sergio Perez:
The first one was when I actually got my first-ever bonus for being on the podium in 𒉰the lower ཧcategories.

mahbx.com:
Top three circuits from any racing series?

Sergio Perez:
I like Zandvoort. I like Monaco, and I like Baku.

mahbx.com:
Any circuits that you♛ would like to aꦫdd to the calendar?

Sergio Perez:
Imo🥂la, I'd love to race there because I've never🧸 raced there. I think Imola would be nice.

mahbx.com:
Who was the most difficulꦰt or satisfying driver you have raced against in any category?

Sergio Perez:
Probably my team-mates, because in this sport you are always compe💟ting against your team-mates, that's your first reference. I've had really goo꧂d team-mates in the past.

mahbx.com:
What are you top three emojis?

Sergio Perez:
T🍨he smile face that cries, the good luck thumbs up, and probably the 'please' one (pra🅠ying hands)

mahbx.com:
And finally, what's the worst joke that you know?

Sergio Perez:
I'm always joking around with my friends, I have plenty of jokes tha𒁃t I've done in past, but I'm not so good at the 'bad' jokes in English!

mahbx.com:
Thanks very much Sergio!

Sergio Perez:
No problem.