Red Bull's Perez feels 'like a dog finding a new family'
Sergio Perez is well on his way to settling in at Red Bull Racing but the Mexican says that changing teams has made him feel "like a dog finding a new family".
Perez has moved to the Milton Keynes-based outfit after a seven-year tenure with Force India/Racing Point, a long residency that almost made the Mexican part of the furniture at Team Silverstone.
While the 30-year-old is aware of the challenges that lie ahead, he also feels grateful for the opportunity to embrace them with a front-running outfit for the first time in his ten-year career in F1.
"It's amazing to be part of the Red Bull family," Perez said after his first day at Milton Keynes. "When you come here you realize and you straight away know why they've been so successful, the amount of infrastructure they have, development and people. They have very capable people here.
"So, it's in a way very different to the teams that I worked for. The organization is tremendously high, a lot of people and the resources you see here are very impressive. I can't wait to get on track with my group of people.
"Obviously I've been seven years with a team, so it feels a bit different. It's like a dog finding a new family.
"Being with a family for so many years, you are used to see them and then all of a sudden, you're changing. But I have to say, I'm starting to feel very comfortable here.
"It's a fantastic team, very united and I can see that there's a lot of fun ahead of us.
"It's just a dream come true, working with Adrian, with the amount of engineers, and the level of engineering inside this team is very impressive."
Having made his F1 debut in 2011, Perez is one of F1's most seasoned drivers, not just in terms of the sheer number of years that he's been on the grid but also in terms of the diversity of experiences that he's enjoyed. The Mexican therefore believes he can add value to his new team.
"I think I can bring a lot of experience, knowledge," he said. "I've been in the sport in different teams, in different eras and I think I know what I need for myself but I also feel that I can push the team forward in certain areas.
"There are already some good ideas that we've been sharing with the team that hopefully can bring some performance on track.
Perez knows that racing alongside Red Bull's favourite son, the intrepid Max Verstappen, won't be a walk in the park. But the Sakhir GP winner is up to the challenge and believes the pair's combined efforts will push Red Bull forward.
"It's a big challenge for myself," he admitted. "We all know Max, how talented, how fast, how much he has grown in the past years, how complete he is by now.
"So he's definitely one of the best, and one of the fastest, if not the fastest out there on the current grid. It's a challenge.
"He's been here a long time, he knows what he needs from the car. I look forward to working with him and to push together forward the team."
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