Perez knows who his rivals are in Melbourne: 'Real challenge'

Sergio Perez is not as light-hearted about the first day in Melbourne as Max Verstappen was. The Mexican still sees some room for improvement and says he experienced the first day of the weekend as a difficult one. During the second practice session, he also complained about the amount of visibility what he had because of the sun.

"t was a tricky Friday in general and overall, I think we have some work to do overnight. Melbourne is also quite difficult when you move to the afternoon because the visibility is super poor with the low sun in your face. I think we are in a good place this season with the car though and we should be looking strong for tomorrow,"" Perez said.

Perez points out competitor for weekend Australia

The Guadalajara-based driver does know who his rivals are. "II think Ferrari look strong, this circuit seems to be better for them, they have been competitive in the long runs. They will be a challenge to beat this weekend, generally they are quite fast around here so it could be interesting to see how we match up."

Perez's contract runs until the end of this season, after which a spot will be vacant alongside Verstappen. Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko previously said that replacing the Mexican is not an urgent matter. Especially not now that Perez has performed just fine in the first two races. Sunday marks the third race of the season in Melbourne.