P​erez set to receive Racing Point upgrades for Eifel Grand Prix

O​pportunities down the drain

Racing Point prioritized Lance Stroll the last two times upgrades were on offer, electing to fit them to his car and subsequently leaving Perez to fight for positions and results with an outdated package.

P​hoto credit: Racing Point

P​hoto credit: Racing Point

Unfortunately for the Silverstone-based team and their data gathering squad, both sets of upgrades to Stroll’s car were rendered useless after he sustained terminal damage, thanks to contact with the barriers at Mugello and Sochi, respectively.

To twist the knife even more, the quite sizeable upgrades fitted to the Canadian’s car in the formerly mentioned Grand Prix - including new sidepods and brake ducts - had placed him in contention for a second successive podium, following Monza’s outrageous top three lineup.

G​ood things come to those who wait

Meanwhile, Stroll’s teammate Sergio Perez has been patiently waiting for his promised upgrades to arrive, extracting the absolute maximum out of his designated set of parts. Racing Point only had enough time to create one set of upgrades by the Russian Grand Prix and, due to Stroll’s higher Drivers’ Championship position, allocated the only available set to his RP20.

P​hoto credit: Racing Point

P​hoto credit: Racing Point

Finally however, during the buildup to the Eifel Grand Prix, Perez received the welcome news that his new parts would be fitted in time for Formula 1’s first visit to the Nurburgring since 2013.

L​ooking forward

Given that the two previous upgrade packages provided little opportunity for data gathering, the upcoming weekend in Germany will be crucial for Racing Point to knuckle down and collect representative statistics.

Additionally, taking Perez’s 4th and 5th place finishes in the Russian and Tuscan Grands Prix into consideration, the Mexican may have an underlying hope for a podium on Sunday with the performance boost from his new parts.