Max Verstappen spent the entire British GP on the back foot, quite unlike his lofty standards. However, in the closing stages of the race, he closed in on Lewis Hamilton. The Dutchman could have taken his eighth win of the season, had the race continued for one or two more laps. Still, Verstappen may not be as bothered with this loss, as he extended his championship lead. It is Sergio Perez who needs to worry more as the situation is getting dire with each passing race for the Mexican.
Perez had another forgettable weekend at Silverstone which has once again become the norm just like in 2023. He has not been on the podium since the Chinese GP and has started to DNF and have qualifying mishaps more often.
At the British GP as well, this story carried on as Perez beached his car in the gravel in Q1 itself during qualifying. This naturally required the #11 driver to start the race from the pit lane, with his car taking repairs and modifications.
RED FLAG
Sergio Perez is out of qualifying after beaching his car #F1 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/tMpOJ5J9Ya
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 6, 2024
In the race as well, Perez could not recover to get into the top 10. And this is quite an alarming situation for Red Bull as the 34-year-old has not finished in the top five since the Miami GP, let alone register podiums.
While Verstappen secured a decent podium finish in Silverstone, Perez’s under-firing form continuing has started to cost Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship. McLaren and Mercedes, who were clearly the two faster cars throughout the British GP weekend, have gained points on the Austrian team.
So, if the Mexican driver doesn’t pull up his socks, the Milton Keynes outfit may have to take a tough call.
Perez may lose his Red Bull seat despite signing a contract extension
Verstappen has carried Red Bull ever since teams like Ferrari, McLaren, and now Mercedes have started to hassle them for wins and podiums. While the Austrian team is trying to find performance in the RB20, the three-time champion is single-handedly keeping them in the hunt for both championships.
Despite not having the fastest car since the Miami GP, Verstappen has won three out of the last six races while registering decent points finishes in the others. Meanwhile, as mentioned earlier, Perez has not even been in the top five, which is unacceptable for a team like Red Bull.
The reason why Red Bull have stuck with the Mexican driver so far is that he helps bring a significant amount of sponsorship money to the table as well as commercial leverage in the Latin American region. Moreover, he seems to be the perfect wingman driver for Verstappen, which also preserves their driver dynamic without any internal rivalry.
That is why they most likely extended his contract lately till the end of the 2026 season. While some reports said that it is a two-year contract, Christian Horner deemed it as a 1+1 year deal.
BREAKING: Red Bull have announced a two-year contract extension for Sergio Perez, which will see him remain with the team until the end of the 2026 season pic.twitter.com/ujgbiPkjmK
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 4, 2024
However, the latest insight on this deal comes from ESPN’s Nate Saunders, who claimed that like all Red Bull drivers, Perez’s contract will also have performance clauses. These clauses are reportedly around the minimum points gap he needs to maintain with Verstappen.
Per Motorsport.com, Perez cannot fall more than 100 points behind the Dutchman in the drivers’ standings at the summer break and the end of the season. If that is the case, then Red Bull may not hesitate to look at replacement options.
