Sergio Perez will be under plenty of scrutiny this weekend. With the F1 world still directing his latest Red Bull contract, the 6-time race winner has plenty to prove. Despite his visible struggles in competing against the resurgent Ferrari and McLaren, Perez believes he can help Red Bull secure the Championship.
Less than twelve months ago, the prevailing assumption was that Sergio Perez’s days at Red Bull were numbered. This belief was based on his performance relative to teammate Max Verstappen – who was comfortably ahead of the Mexican last season. Daniel Ricciardo’s arrival intensified suggestions that Perez’s position was under threat.
Even this year, the deficit between the Red Bull duo has been sizable. This discrepancy is increasingly notable, owing to the emergence of Leclerc, Sainz, Norris and Piastri at the very front.
The RB20 does not have the advantage over rival teams that its predecessor enjoyed. Therefore, Perez is vulnerable to being pushed down the order when he fails to perform.
SERGIO PEREZ: I CAN HELP RED BULL WIN TITLES
Speaking after his latest contract, Perez shows confidence in what he can deliver:
“Being part of the team is an immense challenge, and one I love. We have a great challenge this year and I have full trust in the whole team that the future is bright here and I am excited to be part of it.
“I want to thank everyone for all the trust they are putting in me. It is a lot, and I want to pay it back with excellent results on track and off track.
“I think we have a lot of work to do, we have a lot more Championships to win together.”
Of course, Perez’s role in Red Bull’s past success is not to be dismissed. Although there was very minimal competition in 2023 and 2022, his defensive efforts in 2021 helped Verstappen claim the title.
However, his defensive heroics were largely one-off moments of brilliance. The conditions that created those scenarios are unlikely to repeat themselves – especially if Perez continues to be the slowest of the top six drivers.
In three seasons with Red Bull, the Mexican driver has failed to finish within 150 points of Verstappen.
With Ferrari and McLaren fielding two extremely strong line-ups, this kind of points gap cannot be repeated in the future.
