Sergio Perez remains adamant that he’ll be racing for Red Bull in 2025. If he doesn’t keep the seat, it’s unclear whether his F1 career will continue.
Perez appeared in the FIA press conference ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix and was asked whether he could say with ‘100% confidence’ that he’d retain his drive. He replied ‘yeah, exactly’.
The 34-year-old has a contract for the 2025 season, having penned an extension in June. From that point of view, one can understand why he feels safe.
But he’s at odds with Christian Horner and Helmut Marko. They have both indicated that Perez could lose his seat after a post-season summit, though it’s unclear how they would remove him.
Even if he manages to survive beyond the winter, 2025 will surely be his last year with the team. Red Bull will regret giving him a new contract given his abject performances, and there’s nothing to suggest he can meet the performance standards required to stay for 2026.
Perez’s stock is falling with every race at the moment. But not everyone in the paddock will have short memories.
Sergio Perez could be a candidate for Cadillac if Red Bull let him go
As Alex Jacques pointed out on F1TV’s Weekend Warm-Up show prior to the Qatar GP, Perez earned his Red Bull seat off the back of thriving in midfield cars. In fact, his first 10 F1 podiums came with Sauber and Force India/Racing Point.
In between his stints with those teams, he spent one difficult season with McLaren. It may be that he’s a driver who naturally struggles with the pressure of representing a big name, and is more suited to punching above his weight.
That’s why pundit James Hinchcliffe thinks Perez could be an attractive option for Cadillac. The General Motors subsidiary are set to join the F1 grid in 2026.
“Could be another driver on the Cadillac list,” Hinchcliffe said.
“Exactly,” Jacques agreed. “Huge experience, made his name taking midfield cars to podiums. That’s how he got the [Red Bull] drive in the first place.”
Red Bull reach ‘agreement in principle’ that could be bad news for Sergio Perez
It’s only the beginning of what will likely be a long process, but the early theory is that Cadillac will pair a young US talent with an experienced F1 driver. That will ensure an appropriate balance in the garage.
Colton Herta is the early Cadillac favourite, though the IndyCar driver still needs to secure a superlicence. For similar reasons to Perez, Valtteri Bottas could also interest Cadillac.
Of course, the Mexican won’t be thinking about that potential move just yet. His priority is to stay in race-winning machinery, even if he’s taking a battering from all sides right now.
It’s difficult to predict whether he’ll stay, but one recent development doesn’t bode well. Red Bull have reached an agreement for Franco Colapinto – albeit in principle – and they can’t fit him and Liam Lawson into their 2024 lineups without sacrificing Perez.
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