Helmut Marko confirms Sergio Pérez will stay at Red Bull

This is an outing which should put an end to the latest speculation on the short-term future of Sergio Pérez at Red Bull, weakened by a series of poor results and presumed to be in the hot seat at Milton Keynes. Helmut Marko has confirmed that the Mexican will always be teammate of Max Verstappen at the resumption of the season, scheduled for August 25 near Zandvoort (Netherlands). The Austrian reaffirmed his confidence in Czech in its dedicated forum on the Speedweek.com website, which almost acts as official communication since the German site belongs to the Red Bull group.

« Sergio Pérez will continue to drive for Red Bull Racing after the summer holidays, because there are now races on circuits where he was good last year and we count on stability, declares Dr Helmut Marko in his role as consultant for the Red Bull team. LDuring the last race weekend at Spa, he was very fast with a third place in qualifying on Saturday. » The Austrian points to the deterioration of the tires to explain the Mexican's seventh place in the race the next day.

« Pérez doesn't need to be faster, he needs to be more consistent, assures Marko who takes the opportunity to deny certain rumors. He remains our best solution given the alternatives and the reports that his continued commitment was due to Liberty Media's desire to see him drive in Mexico are not true (…) Our choice of driver is not based on Liberty's intentions . »

What future for young Red Bull drivers like Lawson and Hadjar?

This sounds the short-term death knell for the hopes of residents of the Red Bull family like Yuki tsunoda, Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson, three men interested in Pérez's situation and possibly jumping into his seat at the first opportunity.

Helmut Marko had a few words on the situation of the young 22-year-old New Zealander, forced to be patient as a reserve since his five races contested in 2023 with Alpha Tauri. " We will announce further events with Liam Lawson in September, assures the Red Bull consultant. It had been anticipated for some time that he might gain more experience in Formula 1 in Imola (during a driving session. Editor’s note). » Adding at the same time that his driver was not available for loan to another team.

The situation of Isack Hadjar was also mentioned. The Frenchman leading the championship Formula 2, he could claim promotion to Racing Bulls in 2025, but Helmut Marko prefers to temporize expectations. “ He clearly has potential for Formula 1, he declares. We will see how everything develops, but he will certainly have a role to play. It could be that, like Lawson, he spends a year as a test and simulation pilot. »

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