Sergio Perez’s future to be discussed in Red Bull meeting on Monday
Red Bull are set to discuss Sergio Perez's future immediately after the Belgian Grand Prix, reports Lewis Larkam in Spa.
Sergio Perez’s future is set to be high on the agenda of a Red Bull meeting planned for Monday after this weekend’s F1 Belgian Grand Prix.
That is according to Red Bull’s motorsport advisor Helmut Marko, who has admitted Perez’s future will be disccused following this weekend’s race at Spa Francorchamps.
Speculation has been rife that Belgium could mark Perez’s last race for Red Bull amid a run of underwhelming performances. The Mexican has been outscored by teammate Max Verstappen by 108 points in the last seven races and has fallen to seventh in the drivers’ championship.
Perez’s contract is rumoured to include a performance-related clause which would give Red Bull the option to replace him in the event he falls more than 100 points behind Verstappen by the summer break, despite only signing a new deal in June. He is already 141 points adrift of the reigning world champion.
“Sergio knows that for the constructors' championship we have to have both cars ahead of McLaren if possible, and that hasn't been the case in the last few races,” Marko told the Red Bull-owned ServusTV ahead of qualifying.
Asked to outline Perez’s goal for the weekend, Marko replied: “No, the goal is to win both the drivers' and constructors' championships, and we'll discuss the best way to achieve that on Monday.”
Perez went on to set the third-fastest time behind Verstappen and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc but will start second due to a grid penalty for his teammate. The result represents Perez’s best qualifying performance since the Chinese Grand Prix in April.
After qualifying, Marko said in a separate interview that the wet session “showed that Max is absolutely the best, especially in these conditions".
“It is also crucial that McLaren was not as strong in the wet as they will probably be in the dry [race],” Marko added. "That means our starting position has improved and it will be a very exciting race.
“But it's great to see Sergio, who has really improved. He will start on the front row due to the relegation and now things are looking much better again.”
One of RB pair Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda, or Red Bull reserve driver Liam Lawson, are the most likely candidates to replace Perez if Red Bull opted to make a mid-season change.
