Christian Horner, the team principal, has no regrets about the early contract extension of Sergio Pérez. He asserts that the decision was a ‘logical choice’ at that point in the 2024 season. However, this doesn’t mean that Pérez doesn’t need to quickly regain his form. Rumors are swirling that Daniel Ricciardo is already lined up to replace the Mexican driver.
Pérez started his 2024 season well, securing four second-place finishes in five races. This impressive performance earned him a contract extension in early June. However, Pérez’s results have been less stellar in the last four races. He failed to cross the finish line in Monaco and Canada, and didn’t rank higher than P8 and P7 in Spain and Austria respectively. Consequently, speculation about how long the Mexican will continue to drive for Red Bull is rife.
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Red Bull Team Boss Christian Horner Discusses Pérez’s Contract Extension
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner was asked if he wished Red Bull had not extended Pérez’s contract. “That’s an incredibly difficult question,” the Brit honestly told Sky Sports. “Of course, when you contract a driver, the contents of an agreement are not made public to people like you [the media]. It was absolutely logical to contract Sergio at that time.”
However, Horner also acknowledges that Pérez is currently going through a slump. “Sergio has had a difficult period. His first five races were very competitive. The last five were nowhere.” According to the team boss, the goal for the Mexican is clear. “We want to see the Sergio from the first five races again. He knows that. He is aware of that.” Horner says that Pérez is working hard to regain his old form.
Is Ricciardo Lurking?
This is not the first time in recent history that Pérez has gone through a slump after the Monaco Grand Prix. Last year, after the driver’s heavy crash in VT1 of Monaco, the results were disappointing for a while. Horner hoped that the contract extension would help Pérez this year.
“This is a sport where you can’t hide. Especially with Max Verstappen as a teammate, he knows he has to measure himself against the very best,” Horner explains. “We need him there to support Max, because there are two McLarens, two Ferraris, two Mercedes, we urgently need two Red Bulls.” It doesn’t seem like Pérez has a lot of time to find his form again, as according to the usually well-informed Auto, Motor und Sport, Daniel Ricciardo is almost ready to replace the Mexican.
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