Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko is adamant there’s “no ultimatum” for Sergio Perez that would result in him losing his seat before the 2024 season.
The Mexican is precariously placed in the drivers’ championship, occupying second and is just 30 points clear of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton.
Perez has endured a lacklustre run of late. In Singapore, he was only eighth before retiring in Japan after needlessly clashing with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen.
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He failed to finish the Qatar sprint after being caught up in an awkward incident with Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) and Esteban Ocon (Alpine). Then, in the grand prix, he was only 10th while teammate Max Verstappen cruised to victory.
Verstappen has won all but three races this year, and there’s no doubting his extraordinary talent, but the RB19 is without a doubt the best car on the grid – so Perez should be closer to his teammate.
The veteran of 13 seasons has only been runner-up to Verstappen in four grands prix this year and third overall in two more.
There have been rumours that Perez might be dropped if he fails to secure second in the drivers’ championship.
“There is no ultimatum for Perez,” Marko told OE24.
“I think we’re winning too much. Incredible things are being brought into the world. Max Verstappen’s performance should be appreciated much more. It is extraordinary.”
If, in theory, Red Bull does decide to depose Perez, then Daniel Ricciardo at the very least has to match his AlphaTauri teammate Yuki Tsunoda.
Ricciardo will return to the team at the United States Grand Prix after a five-race injury lay-off.
In those five races, stand-in Liam Lawson scored a season-best ninth at the Singapore Grand Prix. He was otherwise on the fringe of the top 10 in three of the other four races.
Lawson eclipsed Ricciardo’s season-best 13th in just his second race. Bettering that should be Ricciardo’s first point of order.
Regular points finishes would go some way towards staking his claim for a promotion too. He’ll have just five opportunities to do that.
This is, of course, all just speculation. The decision ultimately lies with the likes of Marko and the team principal Christian Horner, who we know are fans of Ricciardo’s.
He can really only control half of his destiny. He’ll need to be a points-scorer and hope Perez suffers a fall from grace.
Ricciardo is contracted to race for AlphaTauri in 2024, though that’s not to say Red Bull won’t swing the axe before the season starts, albeit that a fair bit has to change for that scenario to come into view.
In any case, the Perth pilot is mentally and physically fit – and most importantly motivated.
“I didn’t want it to be anyone else’s wish for me to return (after my hiatus). I wanted it to be fully on my own terms,” Ricciardo told The Athletic.
“And that’s why I think it did help with this (injury) … It’s like, f—, but equally, I got myself to such a good place that I was able to overcome something like this with a much better mindset.”
The United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas on Monday at 6am AEDT.
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Hasibur Rahaman is a passionate sports journalist. He covers everything from cricket to field hockey, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis of sporting events, both within India and on the international stage.
