Sergio Perez told 'his days are numbered' at Red Bull after brutal snub
Red Bull are already searching for a replacement for Sergio Perez, according to Ralf Schumacher.
Max Verstappen is leading Red Bull to glory in the Formula One season, but Perez’s crumbling form is providing an untimely headache. Perez won two of the opening four races this season before fading away dramatically to leave Verstappen unchallenged for a third successive Drivers’ Championship.
Perez is in his third season with Red Bull and is contracted for another year, but his future has repeatedly been questioned, with rumours swirling. Events at the Dutch Grand Prix on the weekend have only heightened those feelings of uncertainty, with Perez finishing a disappointing fourth after Verstappen was controversially allowed to undercut him while he was in the lead.
The Mexican cut a frustrated figure in Zandvoort and ex-F1 driver Schumacher thinks his days at Red Bull are numbered. “Sergio Perez once again made a mistake when he drove into the barriers at the entrance to the pits and this action also resulted in a penalty that cost him second place in the end,” he wrote in for Sky Germany.
“I think his days at Red Bull are numbered. Helmut Marko is not exactly known for his warm-hearted way of dealing with Perez. I think that Perez as a guy can’t deal with that so well, that’s how I explain these serious mistakes.
Pierre Gasly was allowed to leave AlphaTauri due to worries over his F1 future
“Perez looked very grumpy, disappointed, and also absent all weekend. I think that there were already agreements about a separation after the end of the season.”
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner rejected suggestions of favouritism after allowing Verstappen to pit first, ahead of Perez, on the weekend. He said the decision was made due to concerns that Fernando Alonso and Pierre Gasly would undercut Verstappen.
Red Bull allowed Max Verstappen to undercut Sergio Perez at the Dutch Grand Prix (Dan Istitene/Getty Images)HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Red Bull replace Sergio Perez at the end of the season? Comment below.
"At one point, [Verstappen] took seven seconds out of [Perez] in three laps, and was coming very, very fast,” he said. “Then you get to that awkward point of the crossover, and Alonso and [Pierre Gasly] were behind him and had pulled the trigger and pitted.
"You could see from [Alex] Albon suddenly the circuit was coming alive for slicks, so had we pitted Checo first, they would have both undercut Max. So we would have gone from a net one-two to a net one-four.
"We pitted Max first, with the risk being that he'd undercut Checo, but we'd end up with first and second as a team, so it was a no-brainer."
There has previously been suggestions that Daniel Ricciardo’s 'loan' to sister team AlphaTauri was made as a precursor to him taking Perez’s place next season, but the Australian suffered a broken hand in the Netherlands. Instead, Schumacher has tipped McLaren’s Lando Norris for the role.
“I could imagine Lando Norris becoming Verstappen’s new teammate sooner. The two seem to be good friends,” he wrote. “I assume that Verstappen will ultimately decide who will be his teammate. This is nothing unusual. That was already the case with Senna, my brother also had this right.
“When a driver like Verstappen contributes so much to the team’s success, I also think it’s good that you have your back as free as possible.”
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