A potential return to the Formula 1 grid for Sergio Pérez has been given a boost by one of his former bosses.
Sauber Team Principal Jonathan Wheatley, who took that role after years as the Sporting Director at Red Bull, told the official F1 channel that he has no doubts about Pérez’s race pace.
Pérez signed with Red Bull for the 2022 season and delivered a pair of wins in his first year with the team, first at the Monaco Grand Prix and later in the year at the Singapore Grand Prix, as the team secured their first Constructors’ Championship since 2013. In the next season, Pérez scored two more wins in the early going as he put some pressure on Max Verstappen at the top of the Drivers’ Championship standings, but Verstappen cruised to his third title that year, with Pérez finishing second.
He entered the 2024 campaign facing questions about his contract status, but four podiums in the first five races of the season opened the door to a new contract with the team, which was announced ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix.
However, that new contract was not enough to outweigh his struggles over the last half of the season. Pérez scored just 13 points over the final nine race weekends, as both he and Red Bull faded in the standings.
At the end of the season, Red Bull announced that Pérez and the team had parted ways.
Now Pérez is looking at a potential return to the grid, perhaps with the incoming Cadillac F1 team. Wheatley gave that idea a boost during the British Grand Prix.
“Firstly, I really enjoyed working with Checo. He’s a great personality, great attitude to life, full stop,” said the Sauber boss.
“I have no doubt about his pace and his speed. It’s been natural since the beginning.
“He put in some tremendous drives at my former team and I don’t think it’s much of a barrier that he’s had a bit of time off between driving a Formula 1 car because when you know how to do that, you know how to do it.”
Wheatley went on to praise the driver’s work ethic, and desire for performance.
“I spent a lot of time with him early on because I wanted to get to know him and I wanted him to adjust to the team,” added Wheatley. “What I really liked was he pushed me in my sporting role – pushed me very, very hard.
“He made me question whether I was putting every bit of effort in, not that he was criticising but he would challenge you in a positive way and I enjoyed it.
“I think it helped motivate me to become better at my job and I’d like to think maybe it was reciprocal and the work that we did together made him better at his [job],” added Wheatley.
“He’s fully focused on performance and what do you want from a driver?”
Incoming Cadillac Team Principal Graeme Lowdon has talked at length about the options the team is considering for next season, noting that there is a long list of drivers they are looking at.
But rumors in the paddock indicate that the team is looking towards experience as a key trait for their lineup, which would put Pérez and Valtteri Bottas at the top of their list.
And now Pérez’s pace has been given a boost.
