Christian Horner provides update on Sergio Perez's Red Bull future ahead of Las Vegas GP
The future of Sergio Perez with Red Bull could be clearer than Christian Horner first suggested.
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Christian Horner has moved to allay fears that Sergio Perez could be set to leave Red Bull at the end of the season by clarifying a comment he made at the Mexican Grand Prix. Perez is currently second in the world championship with 258 points, having won two races and clinched a further six podium places this season.
But in the six races since his second-place finish in Italy on September 3, he has failed to finish twice as well as placing eighth and tenth, although he did secure fourth place in both Austin and Interlagos last time out.
Disappointingly, the Mexican crashed out of his home Grand Prix on the first corner last month and it was here that Horner provided an update on the driver's future that suggested he could still move elsewhere before the start of the 2024 campaign.
Horner said: “Checo (Perez) has an agreement with us for next year and that’s our intention, for him to be in the car in 2024. We’ll give him all the support we can to ensure that he finishes second [in the drivers' championship] but there’s no prerequisite that if he doesn’t finish second, you’re out.”
The use of the word 'intention' has given rise to suggestions that Red Bull could have another plan up their sleeve when it comes to determining who will partner reigning world champion Max Verstappen next season.
But when Motorsport.com asked Horner to clarify his comments, he said: “I am absolutely confident and clear that Checo will be our driver next year. Now, if he was injured or something like that, there are circumstances beyond our control. But the clear plan and therefore the clear intention is that he will continue.
“We're planning to continue. We have announced the AlphaTauri drivers, we have our Red Bull Racing drivers. That is how we intend to go racing in 2024.”
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Horner has been forced to persistently deny rumours that Red Bull is looking for a replacement for Perez, but the team principal insists that the noise coming from outside the camp has not affected the team's performance, saying: "It hasn't because it's only noise on the outside. On the inside everything is always clear."
However, when quizzed on whether the speculation could have had a negative effect on Perez himself, Horner admitted: “I'm sure it does. But I think what we've seen with him, and one of his strengths is, he has a very thick skin.
“Many times he's picked himself up, brushed himself and got back up again. So hopefully he's doing the same now.”