Sergio Perez has had a dismal time after the summer break this season, with poor qualifying performances and barely any podiums. Perez has also not won a single race since the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, though he drives the strongest car on the grid. Perez is currently contracted to drive for Red Bull in 2024, but rumors have floated all year long about his replacement by the team.

Christian Horner said after the Mexican Grand Prix that Red Bull intended to keep Perez as per his contract, with no deviations. But rumors continued as Lewis Hamilton gained on the Mexican in the battle for second place in the Drivers’ Championship. After the race in Brazil, Horner clarified to Autosport.com that Sergio Perez will absolutely drive for the team next year. 

I am absolutely confident and clear that Checo will be our driver next year. Now, if he was injured or something like that, there are circumstances beyond our control. But the clear plan and therefore the clear intention is that he will continue.

Horner said, as reported by autosport.com

Sergio Perez is trying to reassert his position as a Red Bull driver, finishing 4th in Brazil and increasing the gap to Lewis Hamilton in the standings to 32 points. Perez now looks likely to keep 2nd by the end of the year and will be hoping for a better season in 2024.

Ross Brawn says a more competitive driver should replace Sergio Perez

Sergio Perez is all but confirmed to drive for Red Bull for the 2024 season by Christian Horner. This decision was criticized by some, who claimed that Perez did not deserve the position as the second driver for the top team in the world. Despite Max Verstappen winning two championships with the team before 2023, Perez has never finished in the standings higher than third.

This year, Perez could only manage two wins, and more importantly, has a gap of 266 points to Verstappen. Not only is that the world record for points between first and second, it is also larger than the gap between Sergio Perez in 2nd and Logan Sargeant in dead last. Former F1 Team Principal and pundit Ross Brawn echoed this sentiment, expressing that he wanted someone more competitive to Verstappen in the second seat for Red Bull. 

What I want to see, frankly, is someone more competitive in the other car because, unfortunately, Sergio Pérez does not offer much competition against Max Verstappen.

Ross BRawn said, as reported by thesportsrush.com

Daniel Ricciardo, the favorite to potentially replace Perez, also has a contract for 2024 with AlphaTauri. Red Bull has a history of switching drivers with their sister team, AlphaTauri/Toro Rosso, mid-season, as they did with Albon and Gasly just a few years ago. There could be a repeat of this in 2024, should Sergio Perez continue into next year with poor form. 

In case you missed it:

• Ex-Ferrari boss Jean Todt talks about ‘stability requirement’ for Ferrari to win
• Ex-F1 Managing Director Ross Brawn reckons Red Bull might need to oust Sergio Perez if there is a ‘reset’ in the pecking order for 2024

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