George Russell tips Sergio Perez as Hungarian GP contender

Perez, who has been under scrutiny due to a string of poor results, managed to score only 15 points over the last six races, sparking speculation about his future in the sport.

Throughout the Hungaroring practice on Friday, Perez ran a different car configuration compared to his teammate, Max Verstappen. While Verstappen's car featured a new engine cover and sidepods, Perez's RB20 incorporated most of a significant upgrade package. This configuration seemed to benefit Perez, as he showcased competitive lap times.

During the second free practice session, Verstappen finished second, just behind McLaren's Lando Norris, with Perez close on his heels in fourth place, merely two-tenths of a second behind the Dutchman.

Notably, Perez achieved his fastest lap on the medium C4 tyres, in contrast to the soft C5 tyres used by his competitors. This performance did not go unnoticed by Russell, who placed fifth as the leading Mercedes driver, with his teammate Lewis Hamilton in seventh.

"I think anything can happen, and I am excited to see what we can do," Russell commented. "We will be in the mix again for the top four positions.

"And Checo seemed quite quick, so that might be a bit of a surprise having a fight there as well. He was really quick."

Russell's remarks highlighted Perez's potential resurgence, suggesting that the Mexican driver might pose a significant challenge in the upcoming race.

In recent races, Mercedes has been competitive, fighting for pole positions and race wins thanks to upgrades that unlocked performance within the W15. However, the high air and track temperatures in Hungary seemed to put Mercedes at a disadvantage, a trend that Russell felt warranted further investigation.

"We definitely got more laps in than most in the long runs across FP1 and FP2, the McLarens are looking really quick and to be honest, Lando is flying at the moment," Russell noted. "I don't think Max is too far behind, and there is probably a power difference between those two in qualifying and then in the race run, Lando and Max look a little bit out in front.

"We need to understand because in the hot conditions of Austria and Barcelona, we were off the pace versus those two drivers, and in the cooler conditions of Silverstone and Montreal, we were ahead. It is something we need to work on."

The Hungarian Grand Prix, the 13th race of the 2024 Formula 1 season, is set to take place over the weekend. The race, scheduled for Sunday, July 21, will cover 70 laps of the 4.381-kilometre Hungaroring in Budapest. With Perez's renewed form and the competitive field, the event promises to be a thrilling spectacle for Formula 1 fans.