Sergio Perez admits ‘main focus’ as new Red Bull F1 contract ‘not the priority’

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Sergio Perez admits earning a new contract with Red Bull is ‘not the priority’ for him in 2024 as the Mexican could have ‘plenty of options’ in Formula 1 by having a good year.

The 34-year-old is in the final year of his current deal in Milton Keynes after last signing new terms in May 2022. Red Bull decided to give Perez a contract through the 2024 season after he won the Monaco GP. But his results in 2023 raised questions over his future for the team.

Perez started last season strongly to threaten to emerge as a genuine title rival to teammate Max Verstappen. But the Guadalajara native struggled to rebuild his season after losing form following the Miami GP. It took Perez until the final rounds of the year to find his form again.

Sergio Perez thinks he can have a ‘really good chance’ at winning the 2024 F1 title

Street races at the Saudi Arabian GP and Azerbaijan GP helped Perez to launch his title bid in 2023. He is a street specialist and won two of the opening four rounds, plus the Sprint at the Baku City Circuit. But Verstappen destroyed Perez’s threat by winning the Miami GP from P9.

Perez started from pole and should have stamped his mark on the Formula 1 title race at the Hard Rock Stadium. Yet Verstappen carved through the field and made light work of claiming the win by nursing his tyres. Perez then finished P16 for the Monaco GP after crashing in Q1.

Red Bull only saw Perez stand on six podiums from the Miami GP, where Verstappen started his record-breaking run of 10 consecutive wins. The 26-year-old would even win 17 of the 18 Grand Prix from Miami to Abu Dhabi. Only Carlos Sainz of Ferrari interrupted his dominance.

Sergio Perez admits earning a new contract at Red Bull is ‘not the priority’

Qualifying was often Perez’s problem as he struggled to remain a threat to Verstappen in the other Red Bull car. His crash in Monte Carlo preceded a run of the Mexican only reaching Q3 in nine of the following 16 rounds. He failed to reach Q3 at the five races after the Miami GP.

Yet, despite Perez also naming the Qatar GP as the ‘worst weekend’ of his Formula 1 career to date, he still hopes to fight Verstappen for the 2024 drivers’ championship. He is unfazed by having an expiring contract as a good season this year could open doors with rival teams.

“It doesn’t bother me, I think it’s part of the job, Perez told Sky Sports. “I’m out of contract for next year, people know about it. But, to be honest, that’s not the priority. I know that if we have a good season [and] we have good results there will be plenty of options out there.

“So, my main focus is to get that consistency throughout the season, that development to be able to really carry on the form that we start with and be better race by race. I think [if] we are able to do that, we have a really good chance of fighting for the championship.”