After a disappointing season, the team has decided to break the contract renewal signed in June. “I am proud to have driven alongside Verstappen,” he declared.
Red Bull Racing’s Dutch driver Max Verstappen competes ahead of Ferrari’s Spanish driver Carlos Sainz Jr. and Ferrari’s Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc during the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull race track in Spielberg, Austria on July 2, 2023.
Joe Klamar / AFP
Despite having renewed his contract in June, Red Bull has decided that it will no longer focus on Sergio Perez after a disappointing season; this year he finished eighth in the Formula 1 World Championship.
Perez leaves Red Bull, could return to F1 in 2026 with Cadillac
As reported by As:
The lack of results and the defeat in the constructors’ championship behind McLaren and Ferrari have put the termination clauses in place. However, Perez’s farewell is painful because he may have said goodbye to F1. The Milton Keynes team has not yet confirmed who will be the Verstappen’s next teammate, although all roads lead to New Zealander Liam Lawson.
Perez’s statements:
«I am grateful for these four years, driving Red Bull was unforgettable, we broke many records. It was an honor to drive alongside Max Verstappen. Thanks to the fans, especially the Mexicans, we will see each other again soon.”
As continues:
He has not talked about retiring from F1, even though he will essentially have no team in 2025. In 2026 there will be two more cars and Cadillac will need two drivers.
The relationship between Verstappen and the team
Between Verstappen and Red Bull there was a “love story was beautiful anyway“. “Then came the crisis of the winter of 2023-2024 with the revelation of an internal investigation into Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who was accused by his personal assistant of inappropriate behavior“. The repercussions of the case are still being felt today and risk undermining the idyllic relationship between Red Bull and the four-time world champion. Equipe also talks about it, launching the idea of a Verstappen at Aston Martin together with Newey from 2026.
“Tensions between Verstappen’s clan, led by his father Jos and his mentor, Marko, and Horner’s clan, have put the champion back on the market“. In the contract he has several loopholes to be able to leave. “Since the first Grand Prix of the 2024 season, Toto Wolff and Mercedes have cleverly tried to attract Dutch talent. Verstappen didn’t bat an eyelid. He didn’t say yes but he didn’t say no“.
