To win your home Grand Prix is something that Formula One drivers dream of, with Max Verstappen dominating Vandvoort and Lewis Hamilton always finding another level at Silverstone.
Red Bull driver Sergio Perez will be hoping to experience this feeling this Sunday, when F1 travels to Mexico for his home race, however his teammate has said that he will not be giving any special favours to help him win.
“As a team, we want to achieve the best result,” said Verstappen.
“It’s Checo’s home race, but that doesn’t mean we’re handing out favours. If we finish one and two, everybody will be happy.
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“Checo is good enough to win races by himself and I’m sure he’ll do a good job as a home race is always amazing.”
Perez has often played the teammate role for Verstappen, famously holding up Lewis Hamilton in Abu Dhabi last year in a bid to help his teammate make up lost ground, but it seems that the roles will not reverse this weekend.
Verstappen and Red Bull have completed the double already this season, with the drivers’ and constructors’ championships won in Suzuka and Austin respectively.
The only thing that the team have left to fight for this season is P2 in the drivers’ championship, with the Mexican driver only two points behind Charles Leclerc with only Mexico, Brazil and Abu Dhabi left to go.
“It’s close, but we’ll go for it,” said Verstappen when asked if a 1-2 in the championship is possible.
“We’ve got a great relationship. He’s a great driver and teammate.
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“We work well together and have a lot of fun”
The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is one of the best spectacles on the Formula 1 calendar, with Perez being worshipped by the home fans every time he races there.
Last year the Mexican fans were treated to seeing their favourite driver stand on the podium, finishing behind Hamilton and Verstappen, however this year they dare to dream of seeing a Mexican on the top step for the first time.