Red Bull is allowing Sergio Perez to “come to his own conclusions” about the likelihood of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix being his last race for the team.
Perez has endured a tough 2024, scoring just four podiums – in the first five rounds of the season – and currently sits a distant eighth in the drivers’ championship. The gap to teammate Max Verstappen currently stands at 277 points, and Red Bull can no longer defend its constructors’ championship title, leading to a shareholder meeting after the season finale to discuss his future.
“Checo has had a very tough year,” team principal Christian Horner said. “Obviously the points tables are what they are. We’re very much focused on really supporting him to the checkered flag in Abu Dhabi, and then obviously it’s not an enjoyable situation for Checo, being in this position with speculation every week.
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“He’s old enough and wise enough to know what the situation is, and let’s see where we are after Abu Dhabi.
“I’m going to let Checo come to his own conclusions, nobody’s forcing him one way or another, I’m going to let him… it’s not a nice situation for him to obviously be in.
“We’ve got one more race this year, we’ll throw everything at it, and hopefully he can have a strong race to end the season in Abu Dhabi.”
Despite Helmut Marko already acknowledging the shareholder meeting, Horner insists discussions over Perez’s future will be discussed privately. However, he would not speculate over the Mexican’s position within the team beyond the final race, even though Perez has a further two years on his contract.
“Checo can’t be enjoying the situation that he’s got at the moment. He’s determined to finish the season on a high,” he said. “Anything regarding the drivers will always be dealt with behind closed doors, and most of all I think our priority is to get to the checkered flag in Abu Dhabi. Let’s see if we can finish the season on a more positive note with Checo.”
Should a change be made, RACER understands Red Bull would likely promote one of Liam Lawson or Yuki Tsunoda, and turn to F2 title contender Isack Hadjar for an RB seat over bringing in Franco Colapinto.
“[Colapinto] for sure, is a talent that’s looking to earn his permanent place in Formula 1,” said Horner. “We have a great pool of talent within the Red Bull junior team, and I’m sure Franco will find his way onto the grid in the future.
“You’re always keeping your eye on what the market is in all teams but we have the strength and depth in the junior program. It was good to see Isack Hadjar doing a good job [in Qatar] in Formula 2 as well.
“I think there’s what, half a point between the drivers going into the final race in Abu Dhabi. Liam and Yuki were very closely matched in that race, in terms of pace, so we’ve got a full stable of drivers.”