Against all expectations, Sergio Pérez should finally keep his starting wheel at Red Bull for the 2025 F1 season.
The 2024 F1 season has been marked by uncertainty surrounding Sergio Pérez's future at Red Bull Racing. While the Mexican struggled with his car, Red Bull was unable to compete effectively with McLaren and Ferrari for the constructors' title.
However, powerful commercial interests could well strengthen his position within the team for the 2025 F1 season. Which would not really suit Valtteri Bottas.
Pérez remains confident despite doubts
Despite a turbulent year, Pérez expressed confidence about his future at Red Bull. During the last Interlagos Grand Prix, he said: “You’ll see me in Las Vegas and next year too.” These comments suggest that he intends to remain with the team for next season, despite persistent speculation.
Rumors are also rife: a sponsor of Pérez, also a partner of Red Bull, would have organized a television series to follow the 2025 season of the 34-year-old driver. In addition, the Spanish newspaper Mark reported that “several new sponsors linked to Pérez have signed with Red Bull for 2025”thus consolidating its place in the Austrian stable.
In response to this wave of new commercial partners, Red Bull boss Christian Horner would have authorized the production of outfits and derivative products for 2025, bearing the logos of these sponsors. These new financial supports could prove decisive for Pérez's career in F1.
Pérez's sponsors: an economic asset for Red Bull
Among Pérez's main backers are Claro, Telcel, Infinitum (from Carlos Slim's group) and Interproteccion, a global brokerage firm. These sponsors are essential, because they would only be interested in Pérez's continuation within the Red Bull team. Other brands linked to the Mexican driver include Banorte, ESPN, Jalisco, and Uber.
Notably, Nestlé's KitKat, another partner of Pérez, recently became a global sponsor of Formula 1, thus increasing the commercial visibility of the Red Bull team. These partners would not only cover Pérez's salary, estimated at $10 million annually, but would also bring an additional $30 million to the Austrian team, partly offsetting the financial losses due to the lack of a constructor's title.
Horner recognizes Pérez's commercial value
At the recent Mexican Grand Prix, Horner highlighted Pérez's importance to Red Bull's commercial appeal:
“Checo is our pilot and he has a contract for 2025”
he recalled, adding that Pérez was in great demand by many sponsors.
“This weekend he's promoting everything from Uber Eats to toilet paper, and it's amazing how many sponsors he's managed to attract.”
Red Bull nevertheless leaves its options open
Despite Pérez's commercial support, Red Bull is not ruling out other options for the future. Christian Horner spoke of promising talents, such as Liam Lawson, who impressed at the Brazilian Grand Prix, and Yuki Tsunoda, not forgetting Franco Colapinto. The team seems to be keeping an eye on these young drivers for the future, but now probably not for 2025.
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