“I Think He Has to Go”: Marc Priestley Feels There Is No Redemption for Sergio Perez at Red Bull

Sergio Perez has faced immense criticism, both from the media and the fans, for the drastic dip in his form in recent races. However, F1 broadcaster and former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley believes that what’s going on with the Mexican is the result of a psychological breakdown rather than a loss of his talent.

While breaking down the Hungarian GP qualifying on the ‘F1: Chequered Flag’ podcast, Priestly was asked how tricky it is for Red Bull to keep Perez in that second seat moving forward. “So tricky for lots of obvious reasons,” Priestly responded immediately. He then explained what he thinks is going on with Perez by adding,

“First of all, I just want to say I don’t think Perez has lost his talent. I think this is a psychological problem. The pressure has built. He has made continual mistakes. He’s trying to overthink it and overdrive it, and that causes more mistakes. But in an elite sport, once you have lost the mental side of your game, that’s an enormous chunk of your capacity to deliver that’s gone. And no matter how you look at it, that has gone with Perez. There’s no way we’re seeing these results without that happening. For me, harsh though it might sound, I think he’s gotta go.”

The talk of Perez staying at Red Bull being tricky is proof enough of how much of a bad phase he’s going through considering he just got a two-year extension a few races ago. However, despite Red Bull showing faith in him, he has not delivered the results the team wants to retain the Constructors’ Championship.

And it seems like the team has had enough. Red Bull’s motorsport advisor Dr. Helmut Marko has finally given a deadline for when they will decide upon the Mexican’s future.

Red Bull will decide on Perez’s future after the Belgian Grand Prix

Marko has said on several occasions that they will decide their 2025 lineup during or after the summer break. However, it was never exactly clear when that was going to happen.

But following Perez’s Q1 exit in Hungary due to a crash (which makes it his fourth Q1 exit in the last six races), Marko made it clear that Red Bull will decide upon the Mexican’s future immediately after the Belgian Grand Prix next weekend.

Speaking to Viaplay Sport Nederland about the Mexican’s future, Dr. Marko said, “In the end, everything is about performance in every sport and especially in Formula 1. I won’t go into any details of the contract whatsoever, but there will be a meeting after Spa [Francorchamps].”