Red Bull face major F1 problem in Perez replacement hunt as 'serious mess' made

13 October 2023 , 07:00

632     0

The pressure on Sergio Perez has intensified in recent weeks (Image: Getty Images)

Racing legend Tom Coronel thinks Red Bull face a tough task replacing Sergio Perez, even if he is making a "serious mess" of his responsibilities this season.

The Mexican is second in the standings but only 30 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who has a significantly inferior Mercedes car. And Perez is more than 200 points adrift of team-mate Max Verstappen, who has already secured his third Formula 1 title with five rounds to spare.

The 33-year-old's struggles have led to plenty of speculation about his future with the team. And the scrutiny has only intensified in recent weeks thanks to his worst run of form all year – scoring just five points across the last three full race weekends.

"Severely unsatisfactory. A very seriously unsatisfactory result," said Coronel, a veteran of more than 1,000 races across many different motorsport series. He was referring to last weekend's Qatar Grand Prix, in which Perez finished 10th after picking up three separate penalties for repeated track limits violations.

Coronel continued: "That's not because I don't fully understand it, but that's because everyone looks at it very logically – one Red Bull is driving at the front and the other Red Bull is making a mess and lounging somewhere in midfield. You don't have to be an expert to say that he is just making a serious mess of it."

Sebastian Vettel warns of looming F1 ban and is "very worried about the future"

Perez has a contract with Red Bull for next season which the team has said it intends to honour. Whether or not it will remains to be seen but, in any case, team principal Christian Horner has already said he will be considering his options for who might replace the Mexican when his deal does expire.

But Coronel believes it will be tough to find the right candidate who can deliver but also not cause conflict with Verstappen. The 51-year-old referred to Hamilton and George Russell being partnered at Mercedes as he warned of what can happen.

Coronel added: "If you put a good driver next to Max, you get two cocks. So, the Russell-Hamilton effect. I also sometimes have the idea that Red Bull is fine with it this way. 'We have one who wins, what difference does it make? Then we let the other one do the chores'. Then, you have to use him for that. He is not going to win a race for you, or at least not the championship."

Horner has already said himself that there is a danger for Red Bull if the team places next to Verstappen a driver with designs on beating the Dutchman. "If you put too extreme alphas in a team it'll tear the team apart," he recently told Sky Sports.

If he decides against bringing in such a character, that would seemingly rule out someone like Lando Norris, who has been heavily linked with Red Bull but who is unlikely to accept playing second-fiddle to another driver. Not wanting to cause a rift with Verstappen may severely limit the number of drivers from which the team can choose.

Daniel Moxon