Sergio Perez’s recent jabs at Red Bull have prompted a response from former Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko that reframes the Mexican’s legacy with Milton Keynes outfit.
Perez, ousted from red Bull after a bruising 2024 campaign alongside Max Verstappen, suggested the team was a one-driver show and hinted that outperforming Verstappen was treated as “a problem.”
He even alluded to a psychologist appointment early in his tenure, allegedly footed by Marko himself. The comments landed like a grenade – and Marko wasted no time pulling the pin.
Speaking to ORF, the Austrian cut through the noise with a reminder of how precarious Perez’s career once looked – and who, in his view, changed that trajectory.
“It is somewhat surprising, because we should not forget that Checo Pérez did not have a contract,” Marko said. “He was fired from the racing team he practically kept alive.
“I don’t know exactly how many Grand Prix races he won, but especially in 2022 he was in the race for the world championship for a while.
“That he eventually stopped performing had several reasons, but overall I think Checo made his career with us.”
©Cadillac
The message was unmistakable: Red Bull didn’t just give Perez a seat – it gave him relevance, trophies, and a place in modern F1 history.
Marko’s tone suggested less betrayal than bewilderment that Perez would bite the hand that, in his view, rebuilt his reputation.
And Marko isn’t the only one who feels Perez owes much of his legacy to Red Bull. Former Formula 1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya has previously made the same case, laying it out bluntly on his most recent MontoyAS podcast.
“Like it or not, Checo has six wins, five of which came with Red Bull,” Montoya said.
“Obviously, people are going to complain and everything, but if you look at it from the outside, Red Bull really gave Checo a very high status. Especially outside of Mexico.”
Montoya argued Perez’s reputation was fundamentally reshaped during his Red Bull stint.
“Within Mexico, too, of course, because he won races and everything, but I think that before, many people didn’t value or appreciate his talent.”
“How I saw Checo before he joined Red Bull, how I saw him afterwards with his victories and what he did at Red Bull and how he helped Max win the title in 2021, it’s a totally different image.”
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He ended with a stark comparison: “If you ask yourself how many people would remember Checo’s time in Formula 1 in 2020… how many people remember him after Red Bull? Well, obviously, Checo will be remembered much more. Totally.”
Perez may be chasing redemption at Cadillac, but Red Bull – and his critics – believe the defining chapter of his career is already written.
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