Perez expects Mercedes to be beaten

Sahara Force India

Force India racer Sergio Perez says he expects current runaway leaders Mercedes to be caught by rivals later on in the season.

Mercedes has romped to four successive pole positions and race victories and has opened up a 97 point advantage in the constructors' championship.

But the Mexican reckons that Mercedes's closest challengers will eventually provide them with a sterner test.

"I think so," he said when asked if Mercedes can be beaten. "Although they look very strong and they will be strong throughout the season – the team to beat – they can be some surprises during the year.

"We haven’t seen the potential of that car yet – we saw it a little bit in Bahrain. In other races they just save the car. It will be interesting to see how they fare in Monaco where it’s more car related."

"In the past we’ve seen that the season is long – four races is nothing. They’re quite far ahead and with a big gap to anyone else, but I think Ferrari and Red Bull will close quite a lot the gap. I believe Red Bull has the best car – that’s my opinion."

However, Williams racer Felipe Massa does not think that Mercedes's advantage will be wiped away.

"In my experience, normally from the first race to the last race there has been improvement of 1.5s, and in a year like this there can be bigger improvement compared to the last," he said.

"If the others grow 1.5s it would still not be enough to catch Mercedes, because they will improve as well. Even if Mercedes only improve 0.5s, they still have a car to win the last race."