Formula 1

Perez battles chaotic traffic in Albert Park practice

Published

2 months ago

31/03/2023

Perez battles chaotic traffic in Albert Park practice

Sergio Perez faced a chaotic experience during Friday’s practice at Albert Park due to the heavy traffic on the circuit.

Sergio Perez describes Friday’s practice at Albert Park as a chaotic experience due to his struggle with traffic throughout the day. In the initial stages of FP1, Perez had to abort his hot lap on multiple occasions due to the number of cars on the track.

The situation worsened when a red flag was raised to reboot the GPS system, which left the teams without information about the cars’ locations. Despite the GPS being restored, Perez still found it difficult to navigate the traffic on the circuit.

Perez reflected on the chaotic practice, stating that it was a bit crazy, especially as many teams still struggled with their GPS data in FP2. He struggled to complete a lap due to the traffic and difficulties caused by the GPS system.

Although some changes made to the car seemed promising in sectors one and two, Perez believes that there is still much work to be done. He expressed concerns about going into the race with insufficient data and feeling somewhat blind about the situation.

The FIA recently issued a document mandating that drivers must adhere to a 1:35.000 lap time limit during reconnaissance and in-laps at Albert Park, as reported to all Formula 1 teams.

Sergio Perez concluded the second practice session in seventh place in Melbourne, which was impacted by rainfall. The Mexican driver is the most recent winner, having claimed victory in Saudi Arabia two weeks ago.

He expressed optimism that the weather would remain dry for the rest of the event as he believes wet conditions can be dangerous.

Perez acknowledged that they will get a clearer picture of their position in the upcoming race, having felt comfortable in sector one and two with the changes made from FP1 to FP2.

However, he was unable to gauge the final sector due to traffic and GPS issues, and he noted that damp conditions reduced grip and posed risks to drivers.