Jul.30 (GMM) Sergio Perez will still be a Red Bull driver after Formula 1’s August summer break.
Ahead of decision-makers Dr Helmut Marko and Christian Horner’s Milton-Keynes meeting on Monday, the hopeful Daniel Ricciardo joked that he would leave his “phone on” rather than switch off for an immediate vacation.
“If you start P2 and finish P8, I think it will be a very boring meeting,” former Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos had told Ziggo Sport on Sunday.
However, although criticism of Perez’s lacklustre recent form was indeed at fever pitch, team boss Horner addressed factory staff on Monday with good news for the Mexican driver.
“Checo will remain a Red Bull driver, despite all the recent speculation,” he said, according to De Telegraaf newspaper.
“We are looking forward to seeing him again after the summer break on circuits where he has performed very well in the past.”
Horner’s reported comments were verified by official sources, according to London’s Times newspaper.
Red Bull’s powerful F1 consultant Marko insisted the main thrust of the meeting was about technical matters – not just the matter of Perez’s immediate continuity.
Max Verstappen, who has reportedly lobbied repeatedly behind the scenes for Perez to stay, agreed.
“I think our biggest concern is the car and that’s what we need to focus on,” said the world championship leader. “I think Checo’s weekend was positive.
“And during the race you can see that we still have problems with the tyres and the degradation. I think our main priority should be to see how we can improve that.”
Marko, meanwhile, said the meeting was also to discuss Red Bull’s driver approach for 2025 – with Liam Lawson and Daniel Ricciardo to go head-to-head at a ‘filming day’ for the junior outfit RB at Imola on Wednesday.
“The meeting is about the future,” the 81-year-old Austrian is quoted as saying by Viaplay, “and about which drivers we’re going to use in 2025.
“We have very good junior drivers. It’s not about one driver specifically, but about how we want to proceed in the future in general.”