Sergio Perez’s prospects of continuing with Red Bull Racing are becoming increasingly strong. With his current agreement due to expire at the end of 2024, discussions around an extension are timely. This discussion coincides with Carlos Sainz, a key player on the driver market, also exploring new opportunities.
This year, Perez has remarkably narrowed the performance gap with his teammate, Max Verstappen. Christian Horner, the team’s principal, humorously suggested, “Probably because he’s out of contract!” before adding more seriously, “No – I think he’s worked hard over the winter, perhaps with a slight change to his approach to the weekends.”
In 2024, Perez has acknowledged that his approach to car setups has greatly aligned with Verstappen’s. Reflecting on this adjustment, Perez shared a light-hearted comment, “Like Carlos would say, we stopped inventing.”
As negotiations progress, it seems the primary hurdle in finalizing a new contract for Perez is his preference for a commitment that spans beyond a single year. Despite potential complications, the team’s current synergy and performance are robust, indicating little desire to disrupt the status quo.
Dr Helmut Marko, while discussing the situation, confirmed, “Checo’s second place proves that this year is his strongest season to date. That is of course very important for the future.” However, Marko acknowledged the consideration of Sainz, stating, “Of course, you always want to have the best people in the team. But with Checo’s performance and the harmony, it’s just right.”
He further noted the benefits of their comparable setups: “The two of them get along well and are relatively similar now in terms of setup, which of course makes all the technical work easier because the data is comparable.” Marko concluded that “a lot or almost everything speaks in Checo’s favour.”
Nonetheless, Horner mentioned that the team isn’t in a hurry to seal the deal, revealing in China, “Not very,” when asked about their closeness to a decision. “We’re in a situation where we’re very happy with our two drivers, but we don’t need to make a final decision until much later in the year.”
GMM
