Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez - F1 Grand Prix of Canada - Final Practice
MONTREAL, QUEBEC - Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing and Sergio Perez of Mexico and Oracle Red Bull Racing talk in the Paddock prior to final practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Canada at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on June 17, 2023 in Montreal, Quebec. Dan Mullan/Getty Images

Red Bull Advisor Helmut Marko explained why Sergio Perez could not match the pace of two-time reigning world champion Max Verstappen despite having the same dominant RB19 car, which has won all eight races of the season so far.

The 80-year-old executive reasoned that Verstappen is simply the best driver in the grid.

"Because Max is Max," the Austrian told the news outlet OE24.

"He's in the best car, but even in that car only [Fernando] Alonso and [Lewis] Hamilton could keep up. Those three are simply the strongest, and Max stands out among them," he added.

Perez is still responsible for two of the eight wins by Red Bull this season, crossing the finish line first in Jeddah and Baku.

Sergio Perez's Dip in Form in Recent Races

Since finishing second in the Miami Grand Prix last May, the 33-year-old Mexican has failed to return to the podium.

Despite having arguably the fastest car on the grid, he has not come out of Q2 in qualifying for the past three races.

Perez qualified last in Monaco due to a crash in Q1, and he started 11th in Spain and 12th in Canada. The Mexican finished 16th, 4th, and 6th in those races, respectively.

Alpine's Esteban Ocon believes he can do a better job than Perez competing against Verstappen for the title if he had the same car.

"I see myself fighting with Verstappen, fighting for a World Championship if we had the same car," the French driver told DAZN.