Can money from Sergio Perez and his sponsors continue to save his place in F1?
The debate is launched while the future of “Checo” has not yet been announced. But it is rumored that he will be replaced at Red Bull after finishing in eighth place in the drivers' championship.
Gunther Steiner, for his part, believes that Perez should compensate and pay a bonus to Red Bull staff after his poor performances in 2024!
Dr Helmut Marko made it clear that the loss of the constructors' title is largely due to the deficit in points collected by the Mexican compared to those of Max Verstappen, who became world champion for the 4th time in a row.
And the Austrian stressed that because of this “bad” 3rd place in the championship, the employees would not have their usual bonus.
Steiner therefore suggested that Perez pay the difference in the expected bonus!
“Pay the guys the bonus! That's what he has to do. Especially now, even if he doesn't drive next season, he will be fully paid by Red Bull for breach of contract.”
Perez could stay in a new role as reserve driver and ambassador but that is not easy to negotiate according to Steiner.
“A driver normally has personal service agreements with sponsors etc. And they're definitely in place for next year. He'll say 'guys, you're making my life difficult, now I'm unemployed, and all These sponsors don't pay me because I don't drive my F1.”
“We are talking about a lot of loss of income for Checo, several tens of millions of dollars. How can we compensate for that?”
So should Red Bull decide to keep Perez?
“I would be really surprised if Checo came back next year. The damage to Red Bull of not winning the championship is not just financial. It's also a question of reputation. Of course, they won the drivers' championship , and they didn't win the constructors' championship because they were only racing one and a half cars instead of two. At some point, someone has to take responsibility for that.”
Juan-Pablo Montoya, seven times winner in F1, would not be surprised to see Perez extended despite everything! Is the Constructors' Championship so important when you have Max Verstappen? According to the Colombian, the question deserves to be asked!
“It’s funny, by finishing third, they’re going to get more time in the wind tunnel and everything for the 2026 car.”
“So, is it so bad to have Checo there? They have the world champion and they have more time in the wind tunnel!”
“And what they lose by not winning the constructors' championship, they probably make up for with Checo merchandise, Red Bull sales and the money it brings in. So what's the downside? And you have a team dedicated to a single driver.”
For David Coulthard, still Red Bull ambassador, Perez must play on the right line.
“Checo is a very good guy, but it's painful to see his resistance to the facts, and I can only assume it's a management game.”
“Julian Jakobi is his manager – we have known Julian and respected him for many years; he is an intelligent manager and good to the drivers. But his job is to make sure the money is there.
“So I can only imagine it's a matter of trying to negotiate the biggest gain possible for him to go away on his own, rather than basically saying, 'Okay, we'll pay you what we agreed to pay you for next year, but we're not giving you a racing car' Which could happen, but it would be a shame.”
Coulthard added that he hoped the negotiations would not come to that, because if they did, “I would lose some respect for Julian and Checo.”
“At the end of the day, data doesn't lie. If there is a contract, then of course a contract has to be honored through negotiation.”
“But I hope they can do it in an adult way, rather than going to court.”
