‘Something is missing’ – Pierre Gasly suggests cause behind Sergio Perez’s Red Bull struggles

Pierre Gasly knows exactly how it feels to be an under pressure Red Bull driver

Pierre Gasly has suggested “something is missing” for Sergio Perez as the threat of the Red Bull axe hangs over, a position Gasly has found himself in before.

Perez is currently enjoying some leeway that was not afforded to Gasly who was dropped from Red Bull after just 12 races in the team. But, while hesitant to comment on what it is like to be an under-pressure Red Bull driver, Gasly did suggest “something is missing” for Perez at the moment.

Pierre Gasly provides reluctant assessment of Sergio Perez’s plight

Gasly was promoted from Toro Rosso up to Red Bull for the 2019 season but soon found himself back in Faenza after 12 races with the team.

Although it was thought of at the time as a brutal but fair decision, Gasly’s form looks better given Perez’s contact situation with the Frenchman only failing to score points on three occasions.

But with the 28-year-old now moved on to pastures new at Alpine, he was hesitant to comment too much on Perez’s current troubles but did suggest it was very different to the situation he was in.

“First of all, I think my situation was very different than Checo’s situation,” he told media including PlanetF1.com at Silverstone. “But I think right now, he is under big pressure.

More on Sergio Perez’s fight to keep Red Bull seat

Christian Horner issues clear ‘unsustainable’ warning to under-pressure Sergio Perez

‘Verstappen family’ theory with Red Bull told to ‘do something’ about Sergio Perez

“I don’t really know what to say to be fair. He is a good driver, everybody knows it but he doesn’t seem to get his things together, whether it’s himself or coming from the team. I don’t know and can’t really comment on that.”

Gasly was then asked just how quickly things can change for a driver and said it can be hard to find any kind of rhythm if you do not feel comfortable in the car.

“Ultimately, his problem at the moment is he doesn’t feel the car,” Gasly continued.

“Whenever you feel strong with a car you have, for whatever reason, an off weekend. Next weekend, you come back, you feel good, you put the strong laps in and you don’t even think about it.

“But he just doesn’t seem to be able to get the performance out of it, whether it’s coming from him or the team, I don’t know.

“But there’s clearly something that is missing at the moment between the two.”

Read next: Fred Vasseur’s Carlos Sainz quip after Lewis Hamilton’s record-breaking British GP win