The last couple of seasons has been a one-man show. One man who fought tooth and nail for his first championship and absolutely destroyed the competition for his second. That man started the current campaign with the same vigor and an even better car. We are obviously talking about the Red Bull numero uno Max Verstappen. However, for a former world champion, that shouldn’t be the case. He believes Sergio Perez is not a push-around and backs the Mexican as a real championship contender.

Both Perez and Verstappen have a race win and a P2 finish in the season so far. The Dutchman is, however, one point ahead in the standings when he coyly snatched the fastest lap in Jeddah despite team orders. Most would discount Perez as a championship contender, however, former world champion Damon Hill isn’t among those people. The Brit, in the F1 Nation podcast, as quoted by Sky Sports, revealed his appreciation for Perez.

“There is so much invested in Max as a person who will ensure that this team can compete for championships for a very, very, very long time that you naturally think that the attention will be on Max and less on Checo,” said Hill. He added, “But Checo jumped on the bandwagon. He showed he can’t be pushed around, and he won’t let himself be portrayed as the weakest link.” (Translated by Google)

Hill is not discounting Perez, especially after his race win in Jeddah.

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He believes the two Red Bull men will fight till the end in equal machinery. Although, this appreciation for Perez is not newfound.

Damon Hill’s admiration of Sergio Perez isn’t recent because of his performance against Max Verstappen

The Brit is a long-time admirer of Perez. The Mexican impressed the 62-year-old back in 2012 when he challenged for a race win and Hill has been following his career ever since.

Ever since Hill has admiration for Perez and has been asking an important question in lieu of his career. He said, “I remember thinking, ‘This guy is good’ and I’ve watched him throughout his career and kept thinking, ‘Why isn’t anyone giving this guy a real chance?'”

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Perez has always been considered a second driver at Red Bull. However, given the opportunity, he can go the distance believes Hill. Whether he will get that opportunity is a different story. Or maybe Perez needs to carve it out himself in the current season.