F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Perez 'keeping all doors open' but no 2021 deal yet

Sergio Perez is continuing to battle for his future in Formula 1 after it was announced that he was to be let go by the Racing Point team at the end of the current season.

The Mexican driver insisted that there had been some progress in his search for a new berth on next year's F1 grid but admitted that there was nothing to report at this stage.

“At the moment there’s nothing to report, nothing has been signed," he told the media ahead of this weekend's Eifel Grand Prix at the Nurburgring.

"There has been some progress. I think it’s going to take a bit more time and I think in Formula 1 if you don’t have anything signed, everything is up in the air. So nothing really to say.”

One of the teams that Perez has been linked to in recent weeks is Red Bull, although the squad insists publicly that it intends to stick with its current driver line-up of Max Verstappen and Alex Albon.

While Verstappen's place is certainly secure, there have been question marks about Albon's future with Red Bull as he struggles to match his team mate's raw pace, despite earning his maiden podium last month at Mugello.

“I am sure they know!" Perez said when asked about the possibility of a seat opening up for him at Red Bull. “As I say, I don’t have really a lot to say in that regard.

"Right now it’s just a matter of keeping all the doors open and be patient as well, he continued. “I'm in no hurry, so let’s see what comes up in the next couple of weeks."

After finishing in fourth place in the most recent Grand Prix in Russia, Perez is currently 11th in the drivers championship, one point behind his current teammate Lance Stroll.

Their joint efforts have put the team into fourth place in the constructors standings, just two points behind McLaren, and Perez says that his focus is on the current campaign rather than what happens in 2021.

“We’re close to the third in the constructors’ championship so that’s the focus," he said. "Right now, I am fully focused on my season with my team.

"I think we made some good progress, we are getting my season back on track. I just want to deliver weekend after weekend."

Perez' 2020 season was derailed by missing two races after testing positive for coronavirus.

He's also missed out on getting the latest upgrades on his car by virtue of being behind Stroll in the points, but will finally get the new parts in time for this weekend's race.

"We’ve been pretty unlucky in the last couple of races with how everything has panned out, missing two races as well," he acknowledged.

"Now, all of a sudden, my season gets a bit more on the way and we are close to where we should be. I’m looking forward to scoring weekend after weekend."

As for the rest, he says that he will have to wait and see: "The future is a matter of time, and to be honest we don’t have a lot more to say.”

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.

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