Sergio Perez confirms Red Bull exit before official announcement in 18-word statement | F1 | Sport
Sergio Perez has confirmed his departure from Red Bull after four years with the team.
The Mexican has spoken out after a disastrous season in which he finished eighth in the Drivers’ Championship and was partly responsible for Red Bull finishing third in the team standings. Fellow Red Bull man Max Verstappen won the world title with almost three times as many points as his team-mate.
And the team have now taken the decision to part ways with Perez who, according to The Daily Mail, has said: “I’m incredibly grateful for the past four years with Red Bull. We broke records and reached remarkable milestones.”
Team principal Christian Horner, who has ultimately taken the decision to part ways with Perez, hailed the 34-year-old as an ‘exceptional team player’.
Perez’s exit paves the way for Liam Lawson to take up one of the most high-pressure positions in sport as Verstappen’s team-mate. The New Zealander, 22, has only raced in 11 Grands Prix for Red Bull‘s sister team, VCARB.
Lawson’s team-mate in 2024, Yuki Tsunoda, was also in the frame for the Red Bull promotion but Horner and co have evidently been impressed by the potential shown on the other side of the VCARB garage.
Isack Hadjar, a French-Algerian 20-year-old who joined Red Bull‘s junior programme two years ago, is now expected to take Lawson’s place at VCARB.
Perez collected 285 points in 2023 to complete a Red Bull one-two in the Constructors’ Championship, and he played an instrumental in Verstappen’s blockbuster world title win in 2021 by slowing down Lewis Hamilton in Abu Dhabi.
He signed a new deal in June which would have taken him until the end of next season. The contract reportedly included performances clauses allowing Red Bull to terminate the agreement in case they were not met.
It is understood that Perez took the decision to leave himself after a frustrating year, although Red Bull began looking at alternatives weeks ago.
The Guadalajara-born racer began his F1 career with Sauber in 2011 and spent a season with McLaren before beginning a successful eight-year stint with Force India, which later became known as Racing Point.
With Perez stranded at the end of 2020 and staring at the possibility of having no seat for the following season, Red Bull offered him a lifeline. Five of his six career Grand Prix wins came alongside Verstappen, including a Monaco triumph in 2022.
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