Red Bull's Christian Horner makes his feelings known about the candidature of Liam Lawson, Sergio Perez, and Yuki Tsunoda
Red Bull boss Christian Horner recently assessed Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda's 2024 performances and believed they could be among the candidates to replace Sergio Perez. He added that both are competent drivers who can replace Checo if the team decides to remove the Mexican.
Perez started the season on the front foot, but his pace quickly dropped as the 2024 season progressed. While his teammate Max Verstappen was fighting hard for race wins and Red Bull's constructors' championship, Checo could not score decent points for himself and the team. Due to this, questions arose about his future with Red Bull.
It was well known that the Austrian team had several junior drivers ready to grab the opportunity and enter F1 with them. Most notably, RB drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson were two of the main candidates.
Yuki Tsunoda had a decent performance in 2024, scoring 30 points, and placed himself in P12 in the drivers' standings. Even though Liam Lawson entered RB as a permanent driver after Daniel Ricciardo's mid-season exit, he managed to score four points in total and finished P21st.
Praising Lawson and Tsunoda's performance, Horner said that the two drivers would be in contention lest the team decide to replace Sergio Perez (as quoted by PlanetF1):
“I think Liam, in challenging circumstances, he’s done a very good job. If you analyse what he’s done, in the time that he’s had and the race pace that he’s had, I think he’s done a good job. I think Yuki has done a good job [too]. So, in the event that anything we decide with Checo, [they’ll] be the candidates, obviously, that we’ll look towards.”
As of now, Sergio Perez's contract with Red Bull is till the end of the 2026 F1 season. The Mexican driver himself is quite confident that he will stay with the team in 2025.
Sergio Perez remains tight-lipped about his Red Bull contract details
Sergio Perez remained tight-lipped about his contract and future with Red Bull. However, he strongly believed he would remain with the team in 2025.
In the press conference before the 2024 F1 Qatar GP, the Mexican was asked about his contract with the Austrian giants and whether it had a clause that allowed him to drive for RB if he was removed from the main team. In response, Checo said that he would not spill any beans publicly about his contract.
"I don't speak. I've been 14 years in the sport and I don't speak about my contracts publicly. So I will not comment on that. I know exactly where I am and I will not speak about it publicly," Perez said.
When a follow-up question was asked whether he was 100% sure he was going to stay at Red Bull in 2025, he said:
"Yeah, exactly," he replied.
As of now, Red Bull has not announced anything about Checo's future with the team.