The Mexican finished fourteenth, three laps behind the winner, Bottas retired due to overheating after 15 laps. The American team suffered with the high temperatures and the fast corner layout, but they know what they need to improve
Sergio Pérez admitted that the Spanish Grand Prix confirmed Cadillac's weaknesses, the American team suffered with the high temperatures and the fast corner layout of the Circuit de Catalunya, a scenario that the Mexican knew would be complicated for the MAC-26: "We knew Barcelona was going to show what we're missing, we have a pretty clear idea of what's going on and we confirmed it today" declared Pérez at the end of a race in which he finished fourteenth, three laps behind the winner Lewis Hamilton.
The weekend was especially tough for Cadillac; the high temperatures (the asphalt reached 57°C) and the high-speed layout took their toll on the American car. Valtteri Bottas had to retire on lap 15 due to an overheating problem that had already affected him in Saturday's free practice, when he went off into the gravel at turn 10 and caused a red flag: "We had to stop the car, it was a precautionary measure, we saw an overheating problem, it was a pretty short race for me," explained the Finn.
Pérez, who missed FP1 because Cadillac gave his seat to reserve driver Colton Herta to comply with the requirement to give opportunities to rookies, did not have an easy start: "It wasn't a very easy start, we had a lot of wheelspin, we lost some positions, we recovered them on the first lap, but from there we were behind Alex Albon throughout the first stint" recounted the Mexican. The main problem came with the hard compound. "The hard tire was really bad for us; we lost ground, and then with the lapping and all that, we lost some ground to Williams," added Pérez.
Bottas, who started from twentieth position, just behind his teammate, was optimistic despite the difficulties: "Tough weekend, with many problems and that's two consecutive weekends now, but the positive thing is that the pit stop was excellent and we seemed a bit closer in qualifying, but in race pace we still have to work" stated the Finn, who hopes the team can take a step forward in the next races.
Cadillac now has a week to work on the upgrades they need before the next Grand Prix in Austria, a circuit that also demands good performance in fast corners and efficient tire management. Pérez trusts that the team has identified the problems and can find solutions: "We have a pretty clear idea of what's going on," insisted the Mexican, who hopes the points will come sooner rather than later.
