Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? Sergio Perez picks his favorite footballer
Red Bull driver Sergio Perez picked Lionel Messi over Cristiano Ronaldo as his favorite footballer. The Mexican driver is a popular figure in the F1 paddock with hoards of fans on every race track F1 visits given his affable personality off the track and feisty nature behind the wheel, where he refuses to give an inch to his rivals.
Ahead of the British GP, Sergio Perez was tasked to give answers in ESPN's popular segment 'You Have to Answer'. The Red Bull driver was asked questions during the Hot Lap around the Silverstone Circuit behind a road car.
When it came to picking between the two soccer legends, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Perez said,
"Messi, I think."
Some of the other answers Sergio Perez gave included picking the newly-added Las Vegas GP over the 'Crown Jewel' of the sport, the Monaco GP, which he won in 2022.
Red Bull team boss gives a damning verdict on Sergio Perez
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner stated that Sergio Perez's current trend of not scoring points in the race would become 'unsustainable' for the team amid reports of him losing his seat at the Austrian team before the mid-season break.
While speaking to Sky Sports, Horner addressed the Mexican's P17 finish at the British GP that concluded last Sunday:
“[Perez] knows it’s unsustainable to not be scoring points – we have to be scoring points in that car, and he knows that. He knows his role and his target, so nobody is more eager than Checo to find his form again. It’s something we’re acutely aware of, that to win the constructors’ championship you need both cars scoring.”
He further spoke about Perez's future with the team (via F1.com):
“Of course, there’s frustration when both of your cars aren’t performing collectively, and I think it was frustrating to lose Checo in Q1 yesterday. He’d missed P1 because of Isack Hadjar driving, he’d had a decent P2, but he should have been around the top six, and to lose that car in Q1 was very frustrating so, yeah, that’s where we’re at.”
“Checo, of course, he’s under pressure – that’s normal in Formula 1 – but when you’re underdelivering, that pressure only mounts, and he’s aware of that. He knows that. This weekend, nothing’s really gone his way," Horner added.
Despite signing a new deal early in the 2024 season that would see him race for Red Bull until the end of 2026, the team could activate performance clauses and replace Sergio Perez in the coming races.