Sergio Perez’s race on his home turf felt like living a horror story for him, and Red Bull’s wasn’t much better either. Perez failed to survive the first qualifying cut and missed out on points in the race. Ferrari leapfrogged Red Bull in the standings and now sits in third. Team Principal Christian Horner, visibly frustrated, seems poised to make “difficult” decisions to address the team’s current struggles.
Perez’s race went sideways very early, with a botched start slapped by a five-second penalty and sidepod damage from a clash with Lawson. Verstappen’s race wasn’t much better, held back by two 10-second penalties that limited him to sixth. Altogether, Red Bull lost ground to Ferrari, slipping to third in the standings. While the RB20’s flaws played a role, Perez’s season-long struggles have heavily impacted Red Bull’s constructors’ campaign.
Earlier this weekend, rumours have been swirling across social media and the paddock about Perez’s future, with speculation rife that he may announce his retirement on home soil. But so far, nothing concrete has emerged. Yet, Horner’s recent comments lend weight to these rumours, hinting at the possibility of a shakeup.
When asked by Jenna Fryer post-race if Perez would see the season through, Horner offered a telling reply: “Look, it’s a performance-based business. There comes a point in time that difficult decisions have to be made.” (https://x.com/JennaFryer/status/1850684585493053757)
Perez has hinted before that he misses spending time with his family and believes he can’t be doing this for so long, though his father recently dismissed any retirement rumours, promising that “the best is yet to come” for his son. Still, given his recent performance drop, an official announcement may not be far off.
This isn’t just about one bad weekend; Perez has been lagging behind Verstappen all season, contributing heavily to Red Bull’s position in the standings. Since the Chinese Grand Prix in April, he hasn’t found the podium, and he’s failed to make it into Q3 seven times this season—a far cry from Verstappen, who hasn’t missed Q3 once. With a gap of 212 points between the two, Perez sits way back in eighth place, trailing even the Mercedes drivers.
If Red Bull finishes third in the constructors’ standings, they’ll owe it to Verstappen’s unmatched consistency earlier this year, picking seven crucial wins that keep them in the fight. But if they decide to cut Perez loose before the season’s end, the next big question will be who steps into his shoes.
Tsunoda has had a decent season and might be in line for a promotion. Meanwhile, Lawson has shown promise, outpacing Tsunoda over the last two weekends and could be a wildcard for the main team—if he can prove himself in a few more races. The other question will also be who fills the seat in the sister team if one of these two drivers does replace Checo.
All signs point toward an end-of-season shakeup for Perez, who remains Mexico’s most successful F1 driver. But if his time with Red Bull is coming to a close, fans may wonder if he’ll even make it to the finish line this year.
