Red Bull Racing motorsport advisor Helmut Marko has dismissed claims that Formula 1 owners Liberty Media had any role in the team’s decision to keep Sergio Perez on board. This speculation arose following reports from F1-Insider, as cited by Crash.net, which suggested Liberty Media had a significant financial interest in ensuring Perez’s participation at the upcoming Mexican Grand Prix due to his popularity at his home race.
The discussions regarding the Mexican driver’s future intensified post the Belgian Grand Prix, where Red Bull evaluated his performance amid a subpar season. Perez has managed just 28 points in the previous eight races, a slump that has put Red Bull’s lead in the constructors’ championship at risk, particularly against a surging McLaren team. Internal considerations reportedly included potential replacements like Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson.
Amid these mid-season evaluations, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, confirmed that Perez would retain his seat. He cited Perez’s historically strong showings at certain circuits, such as Azerbaijan and Singapore, to justify this decision. This was further complemented by a clarification from Marko, who strongly refuted the idea that external pressures influenced their decision.
In his column in Speedweek, Marko commented:
“Reports that his continued involvement is due to Liberty Media’s wish for him to drive in Mexico are not true.
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“[Liberty] certainly want him to contest his home race, but our choice of driver is not based on Liberty’s intentions.”
Looking ahead, Red Bull is keen to get Perez back to form at tracks where is has a strong record. Marko continued:
“Sergio Perez will also be in the Red Bull Racing car after the summer break because we now have races on the tracks where he was good last year and we are banking on stability.
“He has repeatedly shown good performances in between, and he was also very fast in third place on Saturday at the last race weekend in Spa.
“Perez doesn’t have to become faster, but more consistent and, given the alternatives, he is still our best solution.”
With Red Bull leading McLaren by 42 points in the constructors’ championship and facing a challenging phase mirrored by Max Verstappen’s recent race outcomes, the team is reliant on Perez being able to turn his performance around as well as the team rectifying the recent issues on the RB20.
2024 F1 Driver Standings As Of Summer Break
| Position | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | 277 |
| 2 | Lando Norris | 199 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | 177 |
| 4 | Oscar Piastri | 167 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | 162 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | 150 |
| 7 | Sergio Perez | 131 |
| 8 | George Russell | 116 |
| 9 | Fernando Alonso | 49 |
| 10 | Lance Stroll | 24 |
| 11 | Nico Hulkenberg | 22 |
| 12 | Yuki Tsunoda | 22 |
| 13 | Daniel Ricciardo | 12 |
| 14 | Oliver Bearman | 6 |
| 15 | Pierre Gasly | 6 |
| 16 | Kevin Magnussen | 5 |
| 17 | Esteban Ocon | 5 |
| 18 | Alexander Albon | 4 |
| 19 | Zhou Guanyu | 0 |
| 20 | Logan Sargeant | 0 |
| 21 | Valtteri Bottas | 0 |