Sergio Perez claimed one point after finishing tenth during Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix, but felt his Sahara Force India team went the wrong way with strategy that cost them a better result.
The Mexican started the race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on the Soft Pirelli compound whereas most of the others started on the Ultrasoft, but was unable to make progress after being baulked in the early stages by the two McLaren drivers, and was unable to do any better than tenth after stalling during his final pit stop that cost him valuable time and put him under pressure from Daniil Kvyat.
“It was a difficult race and looking back I don’t think we chose the optimum strategy,” revealed Perez. “We tried to go down a different route compared to everyone else, but the cooler track conditions didn’t help: it was very difficult to get heat into the soft tyres during the first stint and that cost me a few positions at the start.
“I got stuck behind the two McLarens and that hurt my race. I lost a few seconds at the final stop when I briefly stalled the car and that dropped me behind Kvyat, but I managed to get the position back with an overtake going into turn one.
“In any case, to bring both cars home inside the points is a good result for the team, especially when the weekend doesn’t really go your way. We gave it our best and we have come home with points in the bag.”
