Sergio Perez’s Red Bull drive ‘under threat’ with F1 rising star tipped to replace him, pundit claims

Ex-F1 driver turned pundit, Johnny Herbert, thinks Sergio Perez’s future at Red Bull is “under threat” with Lando Norris identified as the driver to replace him.

Perez has fallen 53 points behind World Championship leader and team-mate Max Verstappen in the standings, courtesy of a woeful P16 in Monaco and finishing off the podium once again at the most recent Spanish Grand Prix in P4.

Both Christian Horner and Dr Helmut Marko have stated clearly on the record that Perez is not under any pressure in losing his Red Bull seat, but the pundits watching on from the sidelines are continuing to paint a different picture.

The latest concerned voice about Perez’s future is former Sky pundit Herbert, who thinks there is room for a more competitive driver next to the might of Verstappen.

“There is always going to be favouritism in a team because you know one of them will deliver and deliver consistently,” Herbert said in an interview with OLBG.

“As much as Sergio showed in the early part of the season that he was more than capable of mixing it with Max, there was then a point that he wasn’t. Like Schumacher, Senna, Mansell, Hakkinen, they are always able to get the best out of their equipment every weekend.

“In real terms, I would say he is under threat, but he is a very good number two.

“When he is on his game he can win. Even then he would be second or third and that will still enable Red Bull to win the constructors’ championship which is obviously very important.”

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Herbert went on to single out four drivers who he thinks would be a better match for Verstappen, with Norris in particular highlighted by the three-time F1 race winner.

He added: “If you want more competitiveness to Verstappen, you either need Russell, or Hamilton or Charles Leclerc or maybe Lando Norris.

“Lando Norris has a long-term contract with McLaren and I don’t know if he has a performance clause in it to move from McLaren. I think it would be a good move for Red Bull.

“It would add positivity to the team and I think he is more than capable of being able to deal with that position.”

Sergio Perez is still a big asset to Red Bull

By Mark Scott

The continued ‘uncertainty’ surrounding Perez is a result of a Formula 1 season which is struggling for storylines. Whilst some of Perez’s performances this season have been worthy of criticism, he is a driver who should be in absolutely no danger of losing his Red Bull seat any time soon.

Red Bull’s previous cut-throat approach to underperforming drivers has added significant fuel to this particular fire, but Perez is still doing a great job for the team.

He is still playing a key part in ensuring that Red Bull win both Drivers’ and Constructors’ titles again this year and he attracts a huge amount of sponsorship and commercial interest in his native Mexico – but let’s not allow these facts to get in the way of a good story…

Perez has a contract until the end of the F1 2024 season and is doing exactly the job Red Bull have hired him to do, even if he does have his own personal ambitions of winning the Drivers’ title himself.

On the very rare occasions that Verstappen isn’t in contention for the race win, Perez, more often than not, is usually there to pick up the pieces. He’s not a No.1 driver, but he’s not a No.2 either. He’s a 1.5 and that is a tag many drivers would love to have when regular races are a realistic proposition.