Perez has “no issues” with Marko despite controversial comments

Marko was forced to issue a statement last week apologising for an “offensive remark” when talking about Perez’s F1 performances.

Red Bull’s advisor made reference to Perez's country of origin - albeit incorrectly as Mexico isn’t in South America - as a reason for his inconsistent form.

He was quoted as saying on Red Bull-owned Servus TV: “Let’s remember that he is South American, and so he is not as focused as Max Verstappen or Sebastian Vettel was.

“But racing is his forte, and he had a very good race. Overtaking three drivers, in George Russell and the Ferraris, was not easy.”

Ahead of this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, Perez was asked by Sky for his thoughts on Marko’s remarks.

“First of all, I know Helmut, I got an apology from him, a direct apology which to me was the most important one,” Perez said. “I know him and I know that he doesn’t mean it that way as well. That to me is what matters. 

‘When you have a personal relationship with someone I think it’s a feeling that you’ve got to have and to me that’s the important one. 

“I think the most important [thing] is that we focus on this weekend and on the performance on track, and that obviously a personal apology to me is more important than anything else.”

Perez confirmed there’s “no issues” with Marko and that he wants to move on by focusing on this weekend.

“Yeah, absolutely. There’s no issues,” he added.

“It was important that I got the communication from Helmut straightaway. As I say, we have a personal relationship and that was more important than anything else that publicly you could have to make.”