More Troubles for Pérez Could Mean 'He'll be Fired'?
May 21 - Sergio Perez may once again be in danger of losing his race seat at Red Bull.
Recently, it had appeared that the Mexican had done enough to secure at least another contract for 2025, given that he was maintaining second place in the world championship behind his own teammate Max Verstappen.
But Perez, 34, fell behind Ferrari's Charles Leclerc after a disappointing performance at Imola last weekend.
"The lights were on, but no one was home," surmised former Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos, whilst discussing Perez's Imola performance on Ziggo Sport.
"I found his first stint really shocking, actually. Now he's going to Monaco, where you really need self-confidence. But I think it's much more likely that Lando Norris will fight for pole with Max."
When asked what might happen if Perez continues to slide down the drivers' standings as 2024 progresses, Doornbos answered: "Then he'll be fired.
"Things were going well at the beginning of the year, so you can't fire him, can you? He was second. But if he's fifth in the championship, he'll be gone," the Dutchman added.
Italy's influential La Gazzetta dello Sport gave Perez just 5 out of 10 for his weekend at Imola. "Perez was schooled by Verstappen," the editorial reads.
"While Super Max works wonders, he (Perez) does it disastrously with the same equipment. How long will Christian Horner continue to rely on him?"
For now, Horner is standing behind Perez, insisting that Imola was "an anomaly" in an otherwise good season for the Mexican driver.
"He has changed his approach and has been very solid since the start of the season," Red Bull's team boss added. "A good Monaco next week and he will be at his best again."
Horner does agree that Red Bull needs a second driver capable of being at the front "to help Max, just as the two McLarens and the two Ferraris are stronger together".
However, the door at Red Bull for the job-hunting Carlos Sainz might still be open.
"Sainz is first on our list" for 2025 and beyond, Audi-owned Sauber team representative Alessandro Alunni Bravi told Italy's Autosprint.
"I say this with a smile, but let's say there is a flirtation underway, as having him would be ideal. Although it should be noted that Red Bull and Mercedes are also theoretical competitors until proven otherwise," he said.
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I'm still positive he'll get another deal unless he actually costs the team the constructors' championship.
Aslong as he gets back upto supporting Max regularly, then id agree, teams do like continuity aslong as the results are there
Cull
16th on the grid at Monaco is a disaster for Cheko. I don't believe Cheko will gain any points this weekend at Monaco, where it is notoriously difficult to overtake. Even 10th at the chequered flag seems optimistic for Cheko in his current environment.
"A good Monaco next week and he will be at his best again." This weekend at Monaco is shaping up to be Cheko's worst weekend since he started at Red Bull, so I think he is now skating on thin ice!
He cannot expect to continue at RB if he's not putting runs on the score board!
Not getting past 1st lap sure isn’t helping his standing with the team. Checho lacks initialtive, positive agressive talent. When he is aggressive he makes huge mistakes, he is more reactive than proactive. Sainz or Piastri would make a good teammate for Verstappen. Both have drive and are competitive. In the words of Marko, Perez sits down too much.
Not only did Perez not complete one lap, the evidence shows he caused the incident when he tried to squeeze Magnusson. I believe Jensen's view is correct, the camera clearly shows Perez look in his mirrors and sees Magnusson alongside to pass him and instead of moving to the left to make room, Perez decided to sqeeze Magnusson out. That didn't work!
At a time when both drivers at McLaren and Ferrari are scoring good points, Cheko's recent performances are not supporting Max and will lead to Red Bull's defeat in the WMC. Sainz would be my pick, he is in good consistent form and would be a great asset for the team.
Magnussen is the party who should've acted precautionarily to avoid a collision since Perez wasn't even obligated to leave space in the first place, given the rule about the minimum car length portion required for this rule to apply, yet Magnussen was still hell-bent that he should've been given more space, even though he should've simply bothered to back off from a non-existing gap.
Of course, you are entitled to your opinion, and there are many differing opinions emanating from this incident. It's started a lively debate!
If you've been around long enough, you may recall the late great Ayrton Senna's comment ~ if you see a gap and you don't go for it then you are no longer a racing driver.
Cheko left the door open enough for Magnusson to move alongside. Then after Cheko looked in his mirror and saw Magnusson drawing alongside, Cheko decided to close the door, but it was too late!
I'm not dupporting Magnusson, however, if Cheko had given space then both would probably have finished the event. I mean, Cheko was driving a superior car, and even if he moved left he still would have had the racing line for the following corner. The stewards being paid the big bucks to adjudicate determined it was a racing accident and no further action required!
Senna's famous quote is inapplicable here (& in the Ocon-Gasly incident, for that matter), though.
Ahhhhh Monaco