FRISCO, Texas – Adding speed can mean the difference between winning and losing. Just a matter of inches and milliseconds can decide who is a champion, and who isn't, especially at the highest level of certain sports. Both are certainly the case between the elite-level athletes of the NFL and Formula 1 racing.
However, this past week there was no victory to be won, no opponents, just new connections to be made and sights to be seen. Red Bull Racing's Sergio Perez made a pit stop for a tour of the Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters at The Star in Frisco before catching a flight to Montreal, Canada. Prior to his appearance in this weekend's Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix, Perez appeared in Frisco on behalf of Ford Performance.
He was met by Cowboys defensive lineman and fellow Mexico native Isaac Alarcón, who led the tour with Perez around the building. The afternoon tour included stops by the five Lombardi trophies and Super Bowl rings, locker room and weight room, along with the coaches offices and Ford Center.
"I'm really impressed with the facilities," Perez said. "The level of detail and the level of strategy that is involved in this game is impressive. I've always thought there was training on the physical side. But I have never seen anything like it in my life and it is incredible to see the level of detail and how much strategy there is in this sport."
Last season, Red Bull Racing finished the calendar as the Formula 1 Constructor's Champion. Their first title since 2013. Perez specifically, finished a career-best third in the World Driver's Standings behind only his teammate Max Verstappen and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. He currently sits second in the driver standings this season.
Alarcón is entering his fourth NFL season after spending three seasons as an offensive tackle before making the switch to defensive tackle this offseason. The switch now pairs him with defensive coordinator Dan Quinn who is aiming to see improvement for Alarcón on the opposite side of the ball. Alarcón even stopped by to share a moment between Quinn and Perez during the tour.
"Go get it man!" Quinn said. "Go do great stuff, we're behind you. You have a lot of fans in this building."
As they walked away, Alarcón made sure to relay the significance of the meeting to Perez. Providing some important context and detail about Quinn beyond the conversation.
"That coach is a mastermind brother," Alarcón said. "Right now, the Cowboys are the best defensive team in the entire NFL. We are the team that sends the most blitzes in the NFL. If a normal team sends around 100, we send 160."
Quinn's attacking mindset on defense also happens to line up to Sergio's attitude on the racetrack.
"I'll be the attacker." Perez said. "We have a lot more in common than what I first thought. Because the amount of strategy that's involved and the amount of preparation before the game. We have a lot of similarities."
Perez' trip from the grid to the gridiron was made possible by the partnership between the Dallas Cowboys and Ford Performance. One of the Cowboys' longest-running partners, Ford, will make its return to the Formula 1 grid with Red Bull in 2026.
"It's great to have such a historic brand," Perez said. "It's an iconic brand and I'm super happy to be joined by them and I am seeing what they're doing to prepare already for 2026 when they will finally come on board, back to F1. Looking forward massively to it."
