Red Bull ‘already decided on’ Sergio Perez replacement as rumours swirl
Sergio Perez's replacement at Red Bull for F1 2025 has already been chosen, according to reports.
Red Bull have reportedly “already decided” that Liam Lawson will replace Sergio Perez for the 2025 F1 season.
That is according to ESPN, who claim Perez’s widely expected departure from Red Bull will “likely” be confirmed before Christmas.
Red Bull are expected to make an announcement about their driver plans this week, with Perez set to be dropped after his awful 2024 campaign.
Perez’s abysmal performances were largely responsible for Red Bull slipping to third place in the constructors’ championship.
Lawson, who replaced Daniel Ricciardo at RB from the United States Grand Prix in October, is tipped to take Perez’s seat.
Red Bull discussed Perez’s future at a crunch meeting involving key shareholders on the Monday after the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Red Bull ambassador role for Perez?
The 34-year-old Mexican and Red Bull have been locked in negotiations over exactly what the nature of his exit will be.
Perez is under contract through to the end of the 2026 season after Red Bull opted to hand him a two-year extension earlier this year, something team principal Christian Horner recently admitted was a mistake.
ESPN report that discussions have centred around whether Perez wants to “remain on as an ambassador in 2025 or walk away from the Red Bull company entirely”.
Lawson is set to get the nod to become Max Verstappen's next teammate despite making just 11 appearances across two stints at Red Bull’s sister team in 2023 and 2024.
The New Zealander’s expected promotion would open the door for Formula 2 championship runner-up Isack Hadjar to take his RB seat alongside Tsunoda.
Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko suggested an announcement on the team’s 2025 driver line-up plans would be made this week.
“We will be announcing news on the driver pairing for next year in the next few days,” Marko wrote in his latest column for Speedweek.
“There’s a lot of speculation about this, including rumours about possible transfer fees, which are complete nonsense.”
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