The Dutchman was heading for victory at the Baku street track last year when a tyre exploded and pitched him into the barrier on the high speed run along the city’s Caspian Sea waterfront.
Perez, who was also on the podium in Baku twice while racing for Force India, is in the form of his life and with a new two-year contract with Red Bull freshly signed. Leclerc is familiar with the track's pitfalls, having crashed while on course for pole position in 2019. Seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton will also be keen to make amends after failing to capitalise on Verstappen's retirement last year when he went from second to 15th in Baku, having accidentally triggered a 'brake magic' function on his steering wheel.