Sergio Perez says he is "very concerned" about his lack of competitiveness during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, adding that he was unable to explain his slow pace. The Mexican started the race only 12th on the grid after being caught out by a rain shower during Qualifying, but given Red Bull's dominance this year, Perez might have hoped to make quick work of the rest of the field, even with Hard tyres bolted on his RB19. However, it did not work out that way, as the Mexican was unable to catch the twin Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, and finished the race in a low-key sixth place – a performance that compared unfavourably to teammate Max Verstappen's dominant lights-to-flag victory. Afterwards, Perez was at a loss to explain his inability to catch Ferrari – a team that has just a single podium finish across the first eight races of 2023. "I think the Safety Car basically took all the opportunity away, because it was looking good. We raced on that Hard tyre, and unfortunately didn't pay it off," Perez told F1TV . "I'm very, very concerned about [the inability to catch the Ferraris]. We just didn't have the pace, and we didn't understand why, that's the weird thing, so we have to figure it out. "We've got to sit down and look back, because we know what we are capable of, and it's just important for us to understand what's going on. "We had a good start to the weekend, but we made some changes, we did the tyres a little bit different, so I don't know if there's anything in that." After two wins in the season's first four races, Perez's season is in danger of unravelling, with the Mexican not having scored a podium finish in the last three Grands Prix – all of which have been won in convincing fashion by Verstappen.
I'm very, very concerned. We just didn't have the pace, and we didn't understand why.
Sergio Perez
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