McLaren's Sergio Perez has said that he is settling in well with his new surroundings.
The Mexican moved from the considerably smaller team, replacing Lewis Hamilton at the iconic outfit. He has so far scored on two occasions with a best finish of sixth place at the last round in Bahrain.
Talking in a question and answer session with the team he described his first four races with the team and said that he is really settling in at the MTC.
"It has been great getting to know the whole team - the experience has been all I thought it would be, and more. Everyone has treated me so well and I feel like I have settling in great."
He described his start to the season as "tough" but said that the team have "turned the corner" now. This was evident in Bahrain where both drivers fought in the top 10. Perez eventually finished sixth and Button dropped to 10th after suffering tyre issues.
McLaren's impressive Technology Centre is a physically imposing and is an impressive structure. Perez revealed that he really enjoys working there and at a team with such a legendary past. "The MTC is such an amazing place to work. Every time I go in, I'm impressed by what I see - walking along the boulevard, I see all the great cars from history, and it reminds me what it means to be a McLaren driver: to follow in the footsteps of greats like Emerson, Ayrton and Alain Prost."
He described racing for the team as an "honour." The first four fly away races are tough on the teams and drivers, so the three week break between Bahrain and Barcelona has welcome and given Perez the chance to relax, catch up with friends and train.
When asked what he had been up to, he replied "After the first four flyaways, there's a bit of a natural break - like it's time for everyone to reset and start a new season in Europe. It always feels exciting returning to Europe - almost like the start of the season again - but it's also good that there's a three-week break between Bahrain and Barcelona.
"That's a good time to relax because there's been a lot of travel for the last 10 weeks. We spend huge amounts of time in airports, so it is nice to finally get some time to myself. I'll be training throughout the whole time, but I'll also be seeing friends and family."
A fan of football, Perez also hopes to catch up with the sport. "Hopefully, I can get to watch some football too!"
Spain hosts the fifth round of the season and kick starts the European season. Perez has been busy at the factory preparing for the race. "I'll also be back to the MTC to prepare for the Spanish Grand Prix. We've got some routine engineering meetings before the race, and it'll be good to catch up with the team before we go racing again."
Is he looking forward to the sport's return to Europe? He sure is. "Absolutely. It's something I'm looking forward to because Europe is really the home of Formula 1; tracks like Monaco, Silverstone, Spa and Monza have a lot of history - they have been on the calendar since Formula 1 in 1950. I think it's great that we still have those circuits that represent the sport and all its history."
The sport is moving to new markets but Perez admits that he would hate to lose the classic races. "We can never lose them."
McLaren will be hoping that their upgrades for the Spanish Grand Prix will jump them up the order. They currently lie sixth in the constructors standings behind the likes of Lotus and Force India.
Button and Perez have both apologised to the team for their overly aggressive but hugely exciting battle at the last race in Bahrain.
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| (c) Vodafone McLaren Mercedes |
Talking in a question and answer session with the team he described his first four races with the team and said that he is really settling in at the MTC.
"It has been great getting to know the whole team - the experience has been all I thought it would be, and more. Everyone has treated me so well and I feel like I have settling in great."
He described his start to the season as "tough" but said that the team have "turned the corner" now. This was evident in Bahrain where both drivers fought in the top 10. Perez eventually finished sixth and Button dropped to 10th after suffering tyre issues.
McLaren's impressive Technology Centre is a physically imposing and is an impressive structure. Perez revealed that he really enjoys working there and at a team with such a legendary past. "The MTC is such an amazing place to work. Every time I go in, I'm impressed by what I see - walking along the boulevard, I see all the great cars from history, and it reminds me what it means to be a McLaren driver: to follow in the footsteps of greats like Emerson, Ayrton and Alain Prost."
He described racing for the team as an "honour." The first four fly away races are tough on the teams and drivers, so the three week break between Bahrain and Barcelona has welcome and given Perez the chance to relax, catch up with friends and train.
When asked what he had been up to, he replied "After the first four flyaways, there's a bit of a natural break - like it's time for everyone to reset and start a new season in Europe. It always feels exciting returning to Europe - almost like the start of the season again - but it's also good that there's a three-week break between Bahrain and Barcelona.
"That's a good time to relax because there's been a lot of travel for the last 10 weeks. We spend huge amounts of time in airports, so it is nice to finally get some time to myself. I'll be training throughout the whole time, but I'll also be seeing friends and family."
A fan of football, Perez also hopes to catch up with the sport. "Hopefully, I can get to watch some football too!"
Spain hosts the fifth round of the season and kick starts the European season. Perez has been busy at the factory preparing for the race. "I'll also be back to the MTC to prepare for the Spanish Grand Prix. We've got some routine engineering meetings before the race, and it'll be good to catch up with the team before we go racing again."
Is he looking forward to the sport's return to Europe? He sure is. "Absolutely. It's something I'm looking forward to because Europe is really the home of Formula 1; tracks like Monaco, Silverstone, Spa and Monza have a lot of history - they have been on the calendar since Formula 1 in 1950. I think it's great that we still have those circuits that represent the sport and all its history."
The sport is moving to new markets but Perez admits that he would hate to lose the classic races. "We can never lose them."
McLaren will be hoping that their upgrades for the Spanish Grand Prix will jump them up the order. They currently lie sixth in the constructors standings behind the likes of Lotus and Force India.
Button and Perez have both apologised to the team for their overly aggressive but hugely exciting battle at the last race in Bahrain.
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