NASCAR on TV this week

Sergio Perez Tests Positive for COVID-19

Sergio Perez has tested positive for coronavirus, Formula 1 announced on Thursday, July 30, after an inconclusive test earlier in the day.

Perez had reportedly been self-isolating since the original test.

After the positive result, he becomes the first F1 driver to contract the virus since the series returned in July. The diagnosis comes ahead of Formula 1’s event this weekend at England’s Silverstone Circuit.

“Perez has entered self-quarantine in accordance with the instructions of the relevant public health authorities and will continue to follow the procedure mandated by those authorities,” a statement from the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) sanctioning body reads.

The statement also outlined the positive test’s impact, stating that a “full track and track initiative” was completed and any close contacts with Perez have been isolated.

“The procedures set out by the FIA and Formula 1 have provided for swift containment of an incident that will have ho wider impact on this weekend’s event,” the statement concluded.

Perez has been racing in the series since 2011 and currently drives for Racing Point. He has scored points finishes in all three races so far this season, finishing sixth in both Spielberg races and seventh at the Hungaroring.

Adam Cheek joined Frontstretch as a contributing writer in January 2019. A 2020 graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, he covered sports there and later spent a year and a half as a sports host on 910 the Fan in Richmond, VA. He's freelanced for Richmond Magazine and the Richmond Times-Dispatch and also hosts the Adam Cheek's Sports Week podcast. Adam has followed racing since the age of three, inheriting the passion from his grandfather, who raced in amateur events up and down the East Coast in the 1950s.