Red Bull team principal Christian Horner claims Sergio Perez chose “to take a bit of time out” from Formula 1, despite the driver insisting he intended to continue racing.
Perez repeatedly stated he had a contract to race for Red Bull for another two seasons and had no intention of leaving right up until the season-closing Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, when he acknowledged that talks had been planned relating to his future. After the announcement that an agreement has been reached between Perez and Red Bull for him to leave the team with immediate effect, Horner said the departure was instigated by the Mexican.
“It’s been a culmination of things,” Horner told ESPN. “Checo started the season so strongly, four podiums out of five races. It felt like he’d taken off where he left off last year.
“But then really from Monte Carlo, that race onwards, it has been a very tough year for him and we’ve tried everything with him and supporting him and basically he has come to his own conclusion that I think that now is the right time to step away from Formula 1 to take a bit of time out.”
Sources close to Perez refute Horner’s claims, but the Red Bull team principal also states his belief that the 34-year-old might not return to F1, with no race seats available in 2025 outside of the Red Bull set-up.
“I think the thing for Checo is to take a bit of time out, spend it with his family,” Horner said. “He has been on the treadmill for a long time now and [he has to] work out whether he wants to keep going in Formula 1 or maybe look at other categories, maybe sports cars or something along those lines.
“But I think foremost and utmost, he needs to take some time out and see how much he misses driving a grand prix car, and then only he can decide what he wants for the future.”
RACER understands Liam Lawson is in line to replace Perez, and Horner told Sky Sports: “We have all the information that we need.
“Essentially it will be a choice between Yuki [Tsunoda] and Liam. Both have got strong credentials. We tested Yuki recently at the tire test in Abu Dhabi for a chance for him to work with the engineering team. Liam has done a lot of testing with us behind the scenes this year as well and has driven very well in the six or seven races that he’s had.
“So, we have all the information. We’re just looking at and considering all of that, speaking with the engineering team as well, and we’ll come to a conclusion in the coming days.”
