Isack Hadjar issues surprising Sergio Perez update amid Cadillac F1 rumours

Isack Hadjar said he is hearing “a lot of positives” about Sergio Perez’s chances of being in F1 next season as the Mexican is increasingly linked with a move to Cadillac.

Despite being on the sidelines, Perez’s stock has risen this year and the 35-year-old is rumoured to be on the verge of a return to the grid.

Sergio Perez F1 return receives positive boost

By the time he finally left Red Bull at the conclusion of the 2024 season, it was hard to see a way back to F1 for Perez but Liam Lawson and now Yuki Tsunoda’s struggles with the car have changed how many viewed Perez’s time with the Milton Keynes team.

Perez himself has hinted he is working on a return to the grid and the latest news of that has come from an unusual source, Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar.

The French rookie said he had heard “a lot of positives” about Perez returning to the grid and that it looked like “there’s something going on.”

“He’s definitely F1 calibre, that’s for sure,” Hadjar said ahead of the Silverstone weekend. “And I hear a lot of positives for him next year.

“So it’s looking like there’s something going on. He’s done pretty well next to Max [Verstappen].”

PlanetF1.com understands from multiple sources that there are no imminent plans to make any driver announcements for Cadillac as deliberations on its inaugural driver line-up continue.

Perez also received a vote of confidence from his former team-mate Verstappen who said he would be “a very good choice, especially for a new team.”

“Checo has always been very strong,” Verstappen said.

“Of course, he had some difficult moments with us, but as long as he has the motivation to race, I think he is a very good choice, especially for a new team.

“If you look at his performances at Force India and Racing Point, you will see that he always scored good points there.”

More on Sergio Perez from PlanetF1.com

Sergio Perez set to be confirmed at Cadillac, reports claim

Max Verstappen backs Sergio Perez for Cadillac as rumours swirl

As to why Perez would be an attractive offer, there are a number of elements. To start, he is one of the most experienced drivers available, having made 281 race starts, and the fact he’s a six-time race winner,

He also comes with significant commercial pluses and has links to the likes of billionaire Carlos Slim, not to mention his appeal to the Latin-American market.

Valtteri Bottas is also said to be on Cadillac’s radar with the Finn currently working with Mercedes as the team’s third driver.

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