After another box-office round of the 2024 season was seen at Silverstone. However, it was yet another poor performance from Sergio Pérez. The Red Bull driver finished in a lowly 17th position after starting the race from the pit lane.
The 34-year-old has had a significant drop off in performance over the last six races, failing to record a top five race finish since the 2024 Miami Grand Prix at the beginning of May.
Pérez has scored 15 points over the last six races and has failed to make Q3 on four occasions. Teammate and defending World Champion Max Verstappen has outscored the Mexican by 104 points in the same time period.
Verstappen currently leads the drivers’ championship, and has also qualified and finished in the top six at every event which he has finished this season.
This makes for Verstappen holding 68% of the total points scored by the Red Bull outfit this season. This further prompts the question of where is the Sergio Pérez we know?
A Contract Extension
It was announced after a disastrous Monaco Grand Prix for the Mexican that he would be extending his contract at Red Bull until at least 2026. However, recently there has been talks about his recent performances triggering a release clause.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner spoke before the 2024 British Grand Prix regarding Pérez’ recent performances. Saying it’s “where we thought the contract would help” regarding his potential bounce back to form.
The Milton Keynes based team are known to have a large junior category programme. The news of Sergio Peréz’s contract extension came with small confusion to the drivers market. Other younger talents within the Red Bull programme such as RB’s Yuki Tsunoda and reserve driver Liam Lawson have been waiting in the wings for a call up to the current world champions.
What could be next for Perez?
There is no doubt that with the volatility of the driver market, Checo will have alot of competition for his current seat, even with the safety of his contract.
Current Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz is without a seat for 2025. The 29-year-old has three race wins to his name so far, along with five pole positions and 23 podiums. He is no stranger to the Red Bull stable. He debuted in F1 through the Austrian brand’s sister team of Toro Rosso in 2015, alongside Max Verstappen.
Embed from Getty ImagesAs previously mentioned, RB’s Yuki Tsunoda could be eyeing up the move to Red Bull. It is well known that driver manager of Red Bull Racing Helmut Marko is not afraid of pulling the trigger on driver’s contracts. Noteable movements within the family include Daniil Kvyat losing his seat to Max Verstappen in 2016. Then with Nyck De Vries losing his F1 drive to Daniel Ricciardo last year. With him already being inside the Red Bull family, it could be writing on the wall until the move is made.
There could be competition from other series for the seat too. IndyCar prodigies Colton Herta, Álex Palou and Pato O’Ward have all had privateer test events with McLaren in the last three years, and could be snapped up by Red Bull if the time is right for any of these drivers.