Red Bull driver Sergio Perez has come under increasing pressure in the past few races due to his massive underperformance. The Mexican has not only failed to qualify for Q3 in any of the past three races but has also failed to finish on the podium.
And as Perez continues to underperform, his seat at Red Bull has come under severe threat. Many F1 experts have questioned his place in the team, and there are rumors that Red Bull’s reserve driver Daniel Ricciardo could also replace him.
Tough weekend. We couldn’t find the pace in both qualifying and the race. We’re going to work extremely hard to turn this around. We know we can do it, and we’ll come back very strong.
Congratulations to Max on helping today @redbullracing to reach the 100th win
Duro fin de… pic.twitter.com/DTddQ7nTdi
— Sergio Pérez (@SChecoPerez) June 18, 2023
With many raising serious doubts about Perez’s ability, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has given his thoughts on the current scenario. After admitting that Perez has had some extremely bad races, Marko made it clear that if the 33-year-old wants to keep his seat, he needs to rediscover his form immediately.
“He has to concentrate again“: Helmut Marko on Sergio Perez
In a recent interview with Kleinezeitung.at, Helmut Marko opened up on Red Bull’s plans for the future, and if there was a chance that Daniel Ricciardo could replace Sergio Perez. When asked about the same, Marko replied, “A lot has been taken out of context. Daniel Ricciardo does test drives, yes, but that doesn’t have much to do with sport“.
Marko then went on to analyze Perez’s recent form by adding, “Perez had some very good races and some very bad ones. He has to concentrate again and deliver the best. There is no need for dreams of a world title“.
After providing a damning assessment of Perez’s current situation, Marko did end his comments on a positive note though. The 80-year-old explained that Perez should consider his stint at Red Bull a success as he is the only driver that has lasted two full seasons alongside double-world champion Max Verstappen.
“I know how important it is“: Perez on delivering in Austria
Heading into Red Bull’s home race in Austria this weekend, Sergio Perez knows that all eyes will be on him after his recent struggles. Even though the Mexican has had a horrible patch recently in terms of results, he is confident of putting his setbacks behind him.
Ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix (as quoted by Junaid), Perez said, “I know how important it is for me to have a consistent weekend“. He then added that he is confident of producing a result at the home of Red Bull and ensuring that he does not disappoint the fans that come to see him and his team.
Perez: [….] I see the Mexico flag, which makes me smile. For me my focus will be on track though because I know how important it is for me to have a consistent weekend and really produce a result, I know I am capable of.
— Junaid #JB17 (@JunaidSamodien_) June 27, 2023
Perez then concluded his remarks by explaining how he has the opportunity of scoring some good points for the team as this weekend is a sprint race. He said that after having had a strong weekend in the last sprint race at Baku, he hopes of replicating a similar result in Austria this weekend.
The Mexican fans will all be behind Perez, who is under utmost pressure to deliver if he is keen on keeping his seat at Red Bull. Any further slip in form and the 33-year-old could be at risk of losing his seat to someone like Daniel Ricciardo.
