Why Sergio Perez offers Cadillac a rare shot to break F1 points duck in Baku

Sergio Perez has won at the Baku City Circuit twice, in 2021 and 2023, and it is the one venue on the calendar where his statistical record stands apart from almost every other driver.

That history now matters to Cadillac, a team still searching for its first point in F1 14 rounds into its debut season, as it heads to Azerbaijan this weekend with an upgraded Ferrari power unit reportedly on the way.

Perez's Baku success is not accidental. The Mexican has explained that the circuit's characteristics play directly into his strengths and his driving style.

Precision matters on a layout defined by heavy straight-line braking zones and stop-start 90-degree corners, which reward sharp pedal modulation and clean rotational exits.

Perez's technique, built around rear-end stability and progressive throttle application out of slow corners, aligns closely with what Baku demands.

His 2023 win came from third on the grid, whilst his 2021 victory arrived after Max Verstappen crashed out of the lead, but both results reflect a driver capable of extracting maximum value from a car around the Baku walls.

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Cadillac still searching for points

Cadillac's maiden campaign has so far yielded zero points, primarily a reflection of a chassis that has combined excessive aerodynamic drag with a lack of downforce all year.

That combination could be particularly punishing on a low-downforce, high-speed circuit like Baku, where straight-line speed shortfalls are magnified.

But there have been signs of underlying pace. At the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid last time out, although Perez retired with a water leak, he insisted the pace was there before the mechanical failure ended his afternoon.

"I basically had the same pace as Albon throughout the entire race," he said. "I was always within one to two seconds behind him until our problem. So for the team it was a really strong weekend in terms of pace."

That followed a double finish at Monza, with Perez 18th, one position ahead of team-mate Valtteri Bottas, suggesting Cadillac's raw drag penalty may be less severe than at some earlier rounds, even if it has not yet translated into points.

The Ferrari factor

Cadillac races as a customer of Ferrari. The Scuderia's revised specification power unit is understood to be arriving as an upgrade for Cadillac in Baku.

It could prove key for the team, particularly on its journey to understanding the PU, as it knows it lags behind.

Team principal Marcin Budkowski recently pointed to energy management as an area where Cadillac is struggling compared to its power unit supplier's understanding.

"Obviously we're a customer of Ferrari," said Budkowski. "As per the regulations, we're getting the same hardware and the same engine.

"But we've seen this year, probably not with Ferrari specifically, but more with a Mercedes engine, that there's a lot of performance to be unlocked as well in understanding the intricacies of the energy management mostly, and that's a performance differentiator."

Baku's low-downforce demands could still expose Cadillac's aerodynamic shortfall regardless of what will be beneath the engine cover.

Perez's Baku record at least gives Cadillac reason for optimism it has lacked all season, but converting that history into the team's first point on Saturday will depend on factors well beyond the driver alone.