Sergio Perez's future with Red Bull Racing is hanging by a thread and will be decided not on the track but in the cloistered boardrooms of the team’s shareholders after F1’s season finale in Abu Dhabi.
The numbers paint a grim picture. Perez trails feshly crowned world champion Max Verstappen by an astonishing 251 points in the Drivers’ standings – a chasm that has effectively derailed Red Bull’s bid to retain the Constructors’ Championship.
The Mexican driver’s season has been a litany of underperformance, punctuated by six ignominious Q1 exits – the latest coming last weekend in Las Vegas, where he qualified 16th.
While his eventual 10th-place finish in the race secured a solitary point, it did little to boost his prospects for 2025, leaving him just two more opportunities – in Qatar and at Yas Marina – to plead his cause.
Addressing Perez’s future in an interview in Las Vegas with Austrian broadcaster ORF, Marko words, though measured, carried a sharp edge.
"There will be a meeting after Abu Dhabi and the result of this meeting will be presented to the shareholders and they will then decide what the driver situation for both teams will look like for next year," he said.
"I don't know the exact gap now, but I think Checo has over 200 points less than Max. And then it's clear that the constructors' title is no longer possible…so if Sergio was anywhere near Hamilton and Russell or Ferrari or even McLaren, then we would be well ahead again."
In the wake of his run to P10 on Saturday night, Perez, who was one of only three drivers to start his race on the hard compound, justified his lackluster performance on the team’s strategy and on the machinery beneath him.
“So we used the best tyre at the wrong time and then I had to do quite a long stint on the medium that was quite vulnerable in the middle,” he explained. “So it was all a little bit out of sync, unfortunately.”
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"I think, we really need to solve the issues we've had this year," he added, seemingly unconcerned by his future.
"I think the team knows exactly where we are at and Red Bull is the best team, and I believe that we can have a much better car for next year."
The pressure on Perez is palpable, with younger, hungrier talents waiting in the wings. Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson both have their sights set on a promotion. Tsunoda is slated to test the Red Bull after Abu Dhabi, while Lawson’s solid outings since Austin also make him a credible contender for the coveted seat.
The intrigue doesn’t stop there. Speculation continues to swirl around the potential poaching by Red Bull of Williams rookie Franco Colapinto whose performances have turned heads since his F1 debut at the Italian Grand Prix.
Such a move would underscore the bulls’ readiness to make bold decisions to maintain its competitive edge.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, known for his calculated diplomacy, remained tight-lipped about Perez’s future, though his words did little to quell the unease.
"We have drivers under contract, and we have drivers with options that remain between the company and the drivers involved. And there's nothing to say on that. But if there was something to say, I'd tell you," commented Horner.
"I mean, obviously, a single point from Checo. I mean, it was a good drive from him, a good recovery. But the problem is, we're starting out of position on the day that McLaren were weak. We would have liked to have taken more points out of them today."
The stakes could not be higher. For Perez, the sands of time are slipping away, the shadow of doubt creeping ever closer as the spotlight dims on his Red Bull tenure.
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