Helmut Marko Gives Deadline to When Red Bull Will Announce It’s Second Driver to Team up With Max Verstappen

Tanish Chachra | 24/05/2024
Helmut Marko Gives Deadline to When Red Bull Will Announce It’s Second Driver to Team up With Max Verstappen

Red Bull is yet to confirm its second driver for 2025 with Sergio Perez still running on the final year of his contract. On the other hand, other drivers in the market are linked with the Milton-Keynes-based outfit. Amidst this uncertainty, Helmut Marko claims the Spanish GP could be the time when everyone will know who will drive for Red Bull in 2025.

“I think we should have a clear picture by Barcelona,”  said Marko as per Motorsport-Total.com. However, Marko at the same time praises Perez for his performances this season so far.

With four podiums, Perez stands P4 in the standings. Even though his fumbles are there, they are not hurting Red Bull significantly. Yet, Marko doesn’t want to claim that the Mexican driver is leading the second driver selection chart.

“I wouldn’t say he is in pole position. But he is in a good position,” continued Marko. Recently, it has been reported that Perez was indeed given an offer to remain in Red Bull for 2025. However, it was only a year-long contract extension that was being offered.

Reportedly, this offer is unacceptable to the 34-year-old race driver, who is seeking two years more at Red Bull. Therefore, the negotiations have come to a stall. However, Red Bull certainly has other options too.

Is Carlos Sainz’s Red Bull homecoming possible?

One of the biggest names on the list to replace Perez is Carlos Sainz. The Ferrari driver is set to leave Maranello after the end of this season with no future decided.

So far, Perez has seen Alex Albon and Fernando Alonso stepping out of the way for the Red Bull seat. However, Sainz is the only constant, who has reportedly denied the offers from Audi and is inching away from Mercedes too.

With Red Bull being the place where he started everything, it could be a possible attraction point. But, the Spaniard is also rumored to be in advanced talks with Williams.

The news with the Grove-based team has also come out as a surprise. Regardless of speculations, Sainz’s transfer saga would soon end, as in Imola, he said that he would most probably confirm where he is going after the season ends.

Post Edited By: Aishwary Gaonkar
Helmut Marko Red Bull Sergio Perez

About the author

Tanish Chachra

Tanish Chachra is the Motorsport editor at The SportsRush. He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Reigniting F1's coverage on this site, Tanish has fallen in love with the sport all over again. He loves Kimi Raikkonen and sees a future world champion in Oscar Piastri. Away from us, he loves to snuggle inside his books.

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