Tom Coronel Weighs in on Sergio Perez’s Future at Red Bull
Dutch racing driver, Tom Coronel, has issued a candid assessment of Sergio Perez’s situation at Red Bull Racing. Amidst swirling speculation about the Mexican driver’s future with the team, Coronel didn’t hold back in sharing his insights.
Perez, currently driving the powerful RB19, has faced scrutiny for not consistently matching the performance of his teammate, Max Verstappen, who leads the championship. Though Perez has a contract with Red Bull until 2024, there are increasing suspicions that 2023 might be his last season.
Fueling these speculations further is the return of Daniel Ricciardo to AlphaTauri, with many observers suggesting this move might be a precursor to Ricciardo taking a more significant role in Red Bull in 2024. The rapid replacement of Nyck de Vries by Ricciardo has made many wonder about Red Bull’s strategies and how cutthroat they might be in their decisions.
Coronel believes Perez’s time might be coming to an end soon. Speaking to RacingNews365.com, he remarked:
“In the whole of Formula 1, a contract is toilet paper.
“The most money is made the moment contracts are dissolved; you’ve seen that before with drivers. ‘Shall we say goodbye now? Okay, so then it will cost 20 million extra, on top of it.’ But then you can move on. “We all know what will happen to Perez. Come on, we know that! It’s very clear. Helmut Marko is just looking for a very strong second driver.”
He also touched upon Verstappen’s partnerships over the years, concluding that Daniel Ricciardo was Verstappen’s most formidable teammate between 2016 and 2018. Elaborating, Coronel stated:
“Verstappen’s best team-mate ever? That was [Daniel] Ricciardo. Perez just doesn’t have the consistency. A sub-topper, nothing wrong with that.”
As the motorsport community watches closely, Perez’s journey with Red Bull remains a topic of significant interest.
