Red Bull bosses are ready to hold talks over the future of Sergio Perez amid growing expectations that the Mexican will replace him at the team in 2025.
Although Perez signed a two-year contract extension in June for the 2025 and 2026 seasons, the 34-year-old has struggled for results since then, scoring just nine points in the last eight grands amid poor form that has effectively cost Red Bull Constructors’ Championship.
Red Bull team director Christian Horner said Sky Sports F1 ahead of Sunday’s season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that “we will sit down this week and reflect on the season” with Perez.
After his season-ending exit in the second round, Perez admitted publicly for the first time in interviews that he was talking to the team about what happens next to determine “what’s best for everybody moving forward.”
Perez, who until Sunday had repeatedly insisted he would stick with Max Verstappen next season, said: “We will see what will happen in the coming days, I don’t know what will happen at this moment. I have a contract and the team and I have talked.
“It’s a case of discussing what’s best for everyone going forward.”
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Best action from the final race of the 2024 Formula 1 season at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Horner reiterated after the race that talks would take place this week.
“Obviously, those discussions will take place between Cheko (Perez) and the team,” Horner said.
“Now that we’ve got the season out, we’ll sit down with him and look at the season and obviously where it went wrong and decide together what’s the right and appropriate way forward.
“Cheko has been a great servant of this team.”
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Perez believes he has extended his contract with Red Bull for a good reason as rumors that he could leave continue to grow.
Who will replace Peres?
If Red Bull and Perez decide to make a switch, Liam Lawson is considered the favorite to replace him from sister RB.
Yuki Tsunoda tests for the first time for Red Bull at Tuesday’s post-season session in Abu Dhabi, with a pre-arranged ride urged by Honda, the Japanese driver’s supporters and the team’s driving partners player was the leading scorer at RB the past two seasons.
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Liam Lawson, Yuki Tsunoda and Perez have their say on what their futures could look like in 2025 and whether they could land a Red Bull seat pending a decision.
Asked to assess Lawson’s six races for RB since the New Zealander replaced Daniel Ricciardo from the United States GP in October, Horner said: had and the pace of the race that he had, I think he did a good job.
“Yuki has done a good job and if something is decided with Czeko, they would be the candidates we would obviously look at.”
Having fallen from first to third in this year’s Constructors’ Championship with two teams, McLaren and Ferrari, whose drivers were more closely matched in terms of competitiveness and points, Horner admitted it was important for his team’s second driver to be closer to four-time champion Verstappen. : in 2025.
“You can see the importance of both drivers scoring regularly and collectively in the Constructors’ Championship is extremely important,” he said.
“Ferrari will have a strong line-up next year, McLaren will have a strong line-up, Mercedes will have an inexperienced driver in one of their seats and so it is very important for us that both our drivers deliver and there is no significant gap “.
Red Bull junior Isak Hajar, who finished runner-up in this year’s F2 championship on Sunday, will be the front-runner to take the second RB spot if either Lawson or Tsunoda step up.
The Milton Keynes-based outfit’s interest in Williams’ Franco Colapinto, who they were due to buy from his deal at the Grove team, has cooled in recent weeks.
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