Red Bull not considering Sergio Perez exit before the Las Vegas Grand Prix for ‘very difficult’ reason

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Red Bull Racing could become the first team since 1983 to finish outside the top two in the Constructors’ Championship when one of their drivers wins the title.

Max Verstappen is on course to win his fourth Drivers’ Championship, but Red Bull are slowly slipping backwards in the team standings.

They appear to be set to finish behind McLaren and Ferrari unless they can quickly improve going into the final three races of the season.

The last time that happened was when Nelson Piquet won the championship more than 40 years ago, while Brabham finished 3rd in the standings.

Piquet’s teammate Ricciardo Patrese had a torrid time that year, only finishing five races, although he did win the season finale in South Africa.

Sergio Perez has suffered a similar fate, although he looks set to finish one position higher than Patrese that year as he currently sits 8th in the standings, nearly 100 points ahead of Fernando Alonso.

This has raised plenty of questions about whether Red Bull are going to drop Perez this season.

Ralf Schumacher suggested Perez’s time with Red Bull was over, but he appears set to at least complete the campaign, even if his prospects of driving for the team in 2025 look shaky at best.

Journalist Ben Hunt spoke on the Inside The Piranha Club Podcast about why Perez looks set to survive a late exit from the sport.

While Red Bull may perform better with another driver in the car, it’s never quite as straightforward as that in F1.

Why Red Bull haven’t dropped Sergio Perez before the Las Vegas Grand Prix

Asked if Red Bull are having conversations about replacing Red Bull immediately, Hunt said: “Not for this year.

“I think that the contractual obligations to Perez are too much. He is 242 points behind Verstappen believe it or not in the championship I mean say it out loud it’s flipping bonkers isn’t it?

“They are faced with this difficult dilemma of [whether] to replace him now or later.

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“But I think the actual contractual situation would be too difficult to unpick at this stage and they’ll just suck it up and I think that he’ll see out the season.

“I firmly don’t believe that he’ll be there next year I don’t even know if he’ll be in Formula 1 next year.”

Red Bull face ‘serious’ cost if they break Sergio Perez’s contract

Perez entered the final year of his contract at the beginning of 2024, meaning he was already under pressure to perform.

Although his performances began to dip in Miami, the team offered him a new deal at the Canadian Grand Prix that ran until the end of 2025 with the option for a further year.

Unfortunately, while the new agreement was meant to help Perez’s confidence, it’s not had the desired effect.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Red Bull Racing from engine to Ford links

Red Bull face a ‘serious’ fee if they were to break Perez’s contract, although it would be a surprise if there wasn’t a performance-related clause they could enact if required over the winter.

Eddie Jordan and David Coulthard don’t think Perez will be on the grid next year, but it wouldn’t be the first time that the Mexican has defied people’s expectations and hung around longer than expected after surviving a vote of confidence this summer.