Helmut Marko admits Red Bull is concerned about Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez’s age
Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez are both in the twilight stage of their Formula 1 careers.
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Daniel Ricciardo, Sergio Perez and Helmut Marko (Via IMAGO)
The Red Bull Formula 1 team has been on an incredibly dominant run since the dawn of the new regulations. No one has been able to stop them. While their star driver, Max Verstappen, has a contract until 2028, Helmut Marko has admitted to concerns that Red Bull has got around senior drivers like Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez’s age.
Both Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez are in their 30s but, despite this fact, are willing to carry on in F1 for a few more years. The latter has got a contract with Red Bull until of 2024, and Ricciardo is a prime candidate to take his seat. For next year, the former eight-time Grand Prix winner will continue to make his trade with the AlphaTauri F1 team.
While the duo believe that they can meet the extreme demands of the sport despite being in their 30s, Helmut Marko and Co. have their concerns. While talking about the same, the Austrian told Sky Sport Formel 1, “Of course, we have to think about the future: Both Daniel Ricciardo and Checo Perez are over 30, and that depends on the two of them, what their ideas are, how long they want to drive, and we have to be prepared for that.“
Looking at the comments of Helmut Marko, it is quite clear that the Milton-Keynes-based team is not sure how long Ricciardo and Perez are willing to race in F1. Marko believes that the duo, being in their 30s, could put Red Bull in a difficult position going into the upcoming years and emphasizes that the team needs to have options.
Daniel Ricciardo’s target is to secure the Red Bull seat for 2025
While Daniel Ricciardo is locked in at AlphaTauri until the end of 2024, his main goal for returning at the pinnacle of motor racing is to secure the Red Bull F1 seat. As mentioned earlier, Sergio Perez’s contract is up at the end of 2024, and after that, the second seat on the team could go to anyone. Moreover, there are no guarantees that the tussle for the seat would be a two-way fight.
Formula 1 is an ever-evolving sport, and when it comes to the driver market, it is one big head game where the best of the best are left scratching their heads at the end of the day. The driver market has a well-known reputation for coming up with surprises. After 2024, there could arise a scenario where both Ricciardo and Perez are not the front runners to get the coveted set.
The Red Bull F1 team is a highly sought-after outfit everyone on the current grid would probably love to showcase their skills in their car. Lando Norris’s name has come up up several times in the conversation previously, and considering this, the battle for the 2025 Red Bull seat is going to be an extremely fascinating watch.
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Rishabh Negi
(3244 Articles Published)