"Beating Verstappen is another story, it's not going to happen"

Felipe Massa expected more from Sergio Perez this season. The Mexican made the switch from Racing Point to the Red Bull Racing team, but the veteran has yet to impress. In fourteen Grands Prix he has only finished on the podium twice. Massa tried to find the cause of his poor performance.

"Maybe it has to do with concentration, I don't know, but it is true that if you have a strong teammate, you have to be strong," he told the Dutch branch of Motorsport.com. Massa thinks Perez needs to relax more, think less and enjoy the race.

Perez can do better

"Sometimes you have to be happy and have fun to do your job optimally. Sergio has certainly had a harder time in recent races. He's maybe a tenth or eight slower than Max," observed the 2008 vice-world champion. "But he could definitely be closer to it. He would be two or three tenths behind if he just enjoys it a bit more. Sometimes these things take some time, but I really hope he can get to that level soon."

Perez has collected 118 points for the World Championship so far. It is currently good for third place in the world championship, but third place is the goal. That's where Valtteri Bottas currently sits with a 23-point lead. Massa himself has driven against Perez for years and knows he can do better than he has shown so far.

Beating Verstappen impossible

Massa: "We see him performing very well in the races as well, it's just that sometimes he doesn't start from the best position, which makes things a bit more difficult. But he can do better and has the talent to be much closer to Max. Beating Max is another story, it's not going to happen. But he can do a great job when it comes to scoring points and driving fast lap times."