Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez decision coming ‘in next few days’

The 2024 Formula 1 season is barely in the books, with last Friday’s FIA Prize Giving Ceremony officially bringing the curtain down on this year’s campaign.

But next season is already on everyone’s mind around the sport.

The biggest matter of outstanding business? Finalizing the driver lineup at Red Bull. The FIA released the 2025 driver entry list last week, but there was one notable omission.

The second driver alongside Yuki Tsunoda at Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team:

Yes, they are still tinkering with the name.

Of course, the second driver at Red Bull’s junior team is one part of the speculation. The other, of course, is whether Sergio Pérez will hold onto his current spot alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull. While Pérez signed a new contract ahead of this season’s Canadian Grand Prix, his subpar performance over the second half of the year has led to renewed speculation over his future, and rumors of a potential retirement and ambassador role with the team.

In his weekly column for Speedweek, Red Bull senior advisor Dr. Helmut Marko indicated that final decisions on the lineups will come “in the next few days.” Marko also suggested that some of the rumors being discussed are, in a word, “nonsense.”

“We will be announcing news in the next few days about what the driver pairing will look like next year,” wrote Marko. “There is a lot of speculation and transfer fees are being mentioned that are complete nonsense.”

Marko also paid tribute to Verstappen’s season, which saw the driver secure his fourth straight F1 Drivers’ Championship. The Red Bull senior leader pointed to Verstappen’s drive in the wet conditions in the São Paulo Grand Prix as the stuff of legends.

“In Brazil, he showed on a wet track what he can do under the most difficult conditions. It was a masterpiece, because it was the World Cup, and the pressure on his shoulders was correspondingly great. He had already put in a really good performance in 2016 in Interlagos under similar conditions. But he made a few mistakes back then,” Marko wrote.

“This time he made no mistakes, and that shows how strong his nerves are. The 17 fastest laps he completed at the end of the race were a psychological humiliation for the competition; he outclassed everyone and proved once again why he is one of the best in the sport.”

But the main focus of attention will be on the forthcoming announcement from Red Bull, and whether Pérez will stay in his current role or the team will replace him with either Tsunoda or Liam Lawson, who replaced Daniel Ricciardo at VCARB mid-season.

It seems we may finally get that answer in the coming days.