Sergio Perez rebukes Mario Andretti over 'rusty' Cadillac F1 concern

Sergio Perez has dismissed concerns from Cadillac F1 director Mario Andretti that he and team-mate Valtteri Bottas are "rusty".

Speaking ahead of the Japanese GP, Andretti claimed that after both drivers had spent 2025 on the sidelines after losing their race seats at the end of 2024, they were lacking seat time in coming back to F1.

"To be honest with you, I think they’re both just a little bit rusty," said Andretti. "They’ve both been out of the cockpit for at least one season.

"With the new package and everything else, they’re being very careful just to participate, and not set anything back by maybe going out there and creating more work that’s needed."

However, Perez has firmly rejected this notion, with the Mexican currently leading Bottas two-one in the qualifying head-to-head for grands prix, with a 0.067s average pace advantage.

"To be honest, I think we've been performing on a very high level," Perez told the media, including RacingNews365, ahead of the Japanese GP when presented with Andretti's comments.

"I was especially happy with my weekend in Melbourne, my first qualifying and was quite happy with the race.

"We had very different scenarios; we had a lot of damage, so it really hasn't been straightforward.

"I had a lot of damage and deployment issues in Shanghai, so I haven't had a complete weekend, let's say. 

"But I think in terms of my performance, I'm fairly happy with it, coming back and straight away, I was on the pace in a couple of days, and I believe I am in a good place in regards to driving."