Red Bull Racing has been absolutely dominant in the current Formula One season, thanks to blistering performances from Dutch racer Max Verstappen. However, his teammate, Sergio Perez, hasn’t quite lived up to the mark.
Now rumors have emerged that Red Bull is considering sacking the 33-year-old Mexican.
🚨BREAKING🚨
After Sergio Perez's poor results in recent races, the team decided to terminate his contract. The driver who will take his place in the next race and the remainder of the season is Agustín Canapino.
¡Welcome @AgustinCanapino! pic.twitter.com/FxzDrvZ6kc
— Max Argento 🇦🇷 (@MaxArgento33) June 3, 2023
Why does Red Bull want to sack Perez?
Sergio Perez’s recent struggles have caused him to fall further behind Max Verstappen in the standings. Earlier in the season, Perez had shown great promise, with victories in Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.
Given Red Bull’s commanding lead, there was pressure on Perez to prevent Max Verstappen from getting out to an early lead. Perez was able to go toe-to-toe with his teammate at first, giving them both reason to believe he could keep up their challenge.
In Monaco, however, disaster struck when Perez crashed out during qualifying, and he was unable to score any points. The problems continued in Barcelona, where Perez unexpectedly failed to compete past Q2.
A late surge allowed him to finish fourth in that race, but he still trails leader Max Verstappen by 53 points. As a result, some have speculated that Red Bull might look to replace Perez in the middle of the season.
I definitely expected more from this weekend, I think the podium was possible, but it was important to secure the points and not to take more risks.
Now is time to rest a bit and focus everything on Canada.Sin duda esperaba más de este fin de semana, creo que el podio era… pic.twitter.com/5ljhqqdFNg
— Sergio Pérez (@SChecoPerez) June 4, 2023
Red Bull consultant Helmut Marko has denied rumors that Sergio Perez will be fired following poor performances in Monaco and Spain.
“It’s all nonsense. Sergio’s place has never been in jeopardy and will never be in jeopardy. He is an important element in achieving the goals we have set for this year. We want to finish first and second in the Drivers’ Championship and become Constructors’ World Champions as quickly as possible,” Marko said during an interview with F1-insider.
🗣️ | Helmut Marko on Checo's replacement rumours:
"It's bullsh*t. Sergio's position was never in jeopardy, and it won't be in the future either. He is an important component in achieving our set goals for this year." pic.twitter.com/05QavYreys
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) June 9, 2023
Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen relationship
Although it might appear that the two aren’t the best of friends, Sergio Perez has confirmed on multiple occasions that he and Max Verstappen have a good relationship and have a lot of mutual respect.
“To be honest, we respect each other a lot more than people might think. There’s a great atmosphere in the team, there’s a very high level of respect between each other, with all the engineers on his side and mine,” Perez said to Racing News.
“I think we’re both mature enough to know what’s right and what’s wrong, and as long as that’s the case, I don’t expect that to change.”
What are your thoughts on the matter? Should Red Bull stick with Sergio or replace him? You can share your opinion with us in the comments.
