Veteran driver backs Verstappen on new F1 cars: ‘Could be like Formula E’

The Cadillac team driver, who spoke to GPblog during the second day of testing in Bahrain, sided with his former Red Bull Racing teammate regarding the overall feeling of the new-generation cars.

Perez noted how difficult it is to adequately figure out energy deployment and several other characteristics related to the demands of the new power units.

“It is very different. Definitely, this Formula One feels extremely different from what I was used to. I'd say it's the biggest change I've had in my career in terms of regulations. It's very difficult to figure out what's going on with energy and deployments. All of that is tremendously challenging,” Perez explained.

The Mexican further stated that he patiently waits to see how racing will unfold through the season with the new regulations.

Perez concluded by stressing how overtaking appears certain to be trickier under these new rules, before highlighting that the new regulations could indeed feel like Formula E.

It’s worth noting that earlier, Verstappen, in his assessment of the new rules, stressed how challenging the new cars feel, describing them as more like “Formula E cars on steroids.”

While Perez echoes the sentiment of his former teammate, Lando Norris, on his part, was not fully aligned with these thoughts.

The McLaren driver, despite acknowledging the peculiarities of the new regulations, opted against comparing the cars to the Formula E series.