Red Bull have hinted that Sergio Perez is set to lose his seat after this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Perez has been under pressure for much of this season, scoring just 152 of Red Bull’s 581 points and rarely coming close to team-mate Max Verstappen.
He was sent off in the first part of Sprint qualifying last weekend in Qatar, and he spun on the Safety Car restart in the main race, overheating his clutch in the process, causing him to retire.
“Czeko has been a wonderful driver for us. Of course, in 2021, 2022, 2023, he contributed to the Max championship in 2021, and in 2022 and 2023, to the constructors,” Horner said. Sky Sports F1.
“Most of all he’s a great guy, he’s not enjoying the situation he’s in right now, he knows the pressures of this business.
“We are going to give him all the support until the checkered flag in Abu Dhabi. Whatever he decides to do will be his decision at the end of the day.
“He’s old enough and wise enough to come to his own conclusions. There’s still a race.”
Horner later repeated to the written media. “Czeko is old and wise enough to know what the situation is. Let’s see where we are after Abu Dhabi.”
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Sergio Perez drops to seventh in Q1/SQ1 after he failed to qualify for SQ2 at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Perez’s start to the season, which included four podiums in five races, soon earned him a two-year contract extension in June until the end of the 2026 season, but Red Bull bosses did not deny that his new term contained performance clauses.
After Red Bull decided to stick with him after the summer break, Perez showed his best form for months at September’s Azerbaijan GP, but finished with nothing to show for it after a last-lap collision with Carlos Sainz.
Apart from Baku, Perez has struggled greatly and his lack of points means Red Bull are likely to finish third in the Constructors’ Championship behind McLaren and Ferrari.
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Red Bull leader Sergio Perez overtook Williams’ Franco Colapinto in the Qatar GP Sprint pit start.
“There is a meeting on Monday after Abu Dhabi. All the key people are there, all the shareholders, and a decision will be made there,” Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko said. Viaplay:.
“We’ve always, or most of the time, brought our own drivers through the Red Bull program and I think it’s a philosophical decision. Are we sticking to it? And what I’ve received from the shareholders is that it will be in this direction.”
Button: Tsunoda deserves a chance at Red Bull
RB drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson are the two leading candidates to replace Perez at Red Bull in 2025.
Tsunoda will drive a mainstream Red Bull car for the first time in his career at next Tuesday’s post-season test in Abu Dhabi.
2009 F1 World Champion and Sky Sports F1Jenson Button believes Tsunoda should be Verstappen’s next teammate.
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Red Bull’s Sergio Perez believes he has extended his contract with the team for a good reason as rumors that he could leave continue to grow.
“Personally, I think so,” Button said when asked if Tsunoda deserved a chance at Red Bull.
“They keep throwing teammates at him, and he keeps pushing them away. He’s a very different Yuki than he was last year, and he’s getting the results.
“I think he’s the best player in that position. If it were me, I’m not sure I’d want to go into the Red Bull next to it, but if he’s ready for it, great.
“Lawson, for me, still needs to improve and needs to show he can get a good result.”
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Sergio Perez says F1 should be an example to the rest of the world as he condemns his father’s homophobic comments about Ralf Schumacher.
Tsunoda has outscored Lawson at RB in five events for his teammate since the departure of Daniel Ricciardo in September.
Sky Sports F1Anthony Davidson also believes Tsunoda, who signed a contract in June to stay at RB until 2025, should be promoted to Red Bull.
“From the driver’s point of view at RB, they have to love this situation when they see some vulnerability in the A team with Sergio Perez and they smell that opportunity,” Davidson said.
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Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz reflects on the dramatic Qatar Grand Prix
“So they’re going to drive out to try and create that opportunity for themselves and you can see how lively the drivers are.
“Helmut Marko is the one who ran the Red Bull young driver program. Personally, I think Yuki shows how long it takes to establish yourself in Formula 1. It’s a tough environment.
“RB is a good environment to hone your skills and I believe Yuki is getting there more and more and becoming more consistent.”
Sky Sports F1 live Abu Dhabi GP schedule
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Before the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi, check out the best title deciders of the last decade
Thursday, December 5
11:00: Drivers’ press conference
Friday December 6
5.45: F1 Academy Practice One
7am: F2 practice
9:00 a.m. Abu Dhabi GP practice first (session starts at 9.30am)*
10.55: F2 qualifying
12.45. Abu Dhabi GP Second Practice (session starts at 13.00)*
14.30. F1 Academy Qualification*
15:15: F1 show*
Saturday December 7th
10.15. Abu Dhabi GP third practice session (session starts at 10.30am)
12.10: F2 Sprint race
13.15. Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying
14:00. ABU DHABI GP QUALIFYING*
16:00: F1 Academy: Race One
5:00 PM Ted’s Qualifying Notebook
Sunday, December 8
7.20: The second race of the F1 Academy
9.20: F2 feature race
11.30. Grand Prix Sunday. Qatar GP Rally
13:00 ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX
15:00. Checkered flag. Qatar GP reaction
16:00: Ted’s notebook
*also live on Sky Sports Main Event
Watch the final race of the 2024 Formula 1 season, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, live on Sky Sports F1 this coming week at 1pm on Sunday. Get Sky Sports F1 or stream via NOW
