Through the superior speed of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and the pit sequence that took place around the halfway point, Perez and Ocon eventually faded back to fifth and sixth, respectively, but they were able to hold the hard-charging Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas at bay for much of the race before Bottas finally found a way through into fourth, making the pass with five to go on the Kemmel Straight.

All in all, it was a hugely successful debut for the Racing Point portion of the new Force India team, and it was a continuation in momentum for Perez, who notched his second top-five of the year and his fourth top-10 in the last five grands prix.

“It was a great performance by the team on Sunday, and I think we executed an almost perfect weekend,” noted Perez. “My only disappointment was from Saturday … because I think the pole position was within reach in the wet, but we can definitely be happy about the points we have scored.

We just couldn’t keep the top teams behind us in the dry, so to be ‘best of the rest’ and to have Esteban right behind me is the most we could have done,” Perez added. “My start was really good and I was able to place myself in the right positions during the first few corners. After that, my pace was strong and consistent. I opened a gap and after that I was able to control my race.”

As for Ocon, the 21-year-old Frenchman outqualified his teammate and likely would have finished ahead of him, if not for the scuffle for the lead on the opening lap that ultimately bumped Perez ahead of him.

Even still, a top-six finish was very pleasing for the young star.

“I am satisfied with today’s race and I think we finished where we deserved to with the pace we had,” noted Ocon. “I made a good start and I was on the inside of Sebastian [Vettel] at turn one. He had better traction, but I was very quick on the straight and tried to get the lead on the Kemmel straight. I had a good run down, slipstreaming both Vettel and Lewis [Hamilton] and I tried to find a way on the inside, but in the end I lost a place to Sergio.

“It was good, fair racing all around. It’s a good start to the “new” life of the team; we scored a lot of points which is important for our championship comeback,” Ocon continued. “We showed good pace all weekend and hopefully this is going to continue in the final part of the season.”

Perez added that it was important for the team to pick their battles and put themselves in a positive position quickly.

Though he couldn’t hold Bottas back in the end, the larger agenda was easily accomplished.

“There was nothing I could do to keep Valtteri [Bottas] behind me. Sometimes you just need to pick your fights and think of the bigger picture,” Perez noted. “I am happy with what we have achieved; we have scored some important points for the team and sent a strong message for the next few races.

“This is a nice start of a new era for the team and I’m very proud of what we did in Belgium.”