Red Bull team principal Christian Horner stated that the team has many options to choose from for its future lineup, putting pressure on Sergio Perez’s shoulders as he enters his last year of contract.
The Mexican driver seemed the only one who could fight against Max Verstappen in 2023. His strong start to the season led many to believe that a two-way fight for the title could have been possible. However, after the first few races, Perez was never able to keep up with his teammate and even struggled against less competitive cars on some occasions.
Despite that, Red Bull is still committed to him for the 2024 campaign, but that does not mean that the Milton Keynes-based team is not looking around for different options regarding its 2025 lineup.
Should Perez not deliver the expected result, other drivers like Daniel Ricciardo could receive a call to replace him alongside Verstappen.
Horner spent some words regarding this topic, saying that Red Bull is not in a hurry to make a decision.
“I think the luxury position we’re in, is that we’re not in any rush.
“We’ve got loads of options and I think it is Checo’s seat to lose.
“He’s the one that we’re backing. He’s our 2024 driver. And if he does a great job next year, there’s no reason that we wouldn’t extend him into 2025. But it’d be purely based on what he achieves over what will be a large part of the season.”
Moreover, Red Bull believes that the battle will be even closer in the future. Therefore, it will be crucial for the team to have two competitive drivers fighting at the front, not just one like it happened most of the time in 2023.
“I think that being Max’s team-mate is tough, and I think that you’ve got to have a certain resolve and character to be prepared to go up against Max,” Horner said.
“But as the field converges, it is inevitable that you want your two cars as close together as you can achieve.
“With Checo, his race pace and his racing, have been very strong on many occasions. It’s his performance in qualifying that is probably the area that he needs to focus on over the winter.