Sergio Perez announcement made by Red Bull as 2025 driver pairing confirmed

Sergio Perez has signed a new contract with Red Bull, keeping him with the team until the end of the 2026 campaign. The Mexican will partner up with Max Verstappen for two more seasons after fending off interest in his seat from Carlos Sainz, Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo.

The Mexican racer climbed to the top step of the podium at least once in each of his first three seasons with Red Bull, but his form has drastically tailed off since the European leg of the 2023 campaign, and he is currently winless since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in April of last year.

Perez’s future was a constant topic of contention throughout the second half of 2023, and his struggles have continued into 2024 with the 34-year-old sitting in fifth place in the Drivers’ Championship standings after eight rounds of the season. Despite these underwhelming results, Christian Horner and his team have signed off on a new contract.

Red Bull weren’t short of options to replace their struggling second driver. Sainz was touted as the leading alternative after Ferrari opted to drop the Spaniard in favour of signing Lewis Hamilton for 2025, but his Australian Grand Prix triumph and three further podiums this year were not enough to earn him another drive with a top team.

Ahead of the season, most expected the intra-team VCARB battle Tsunoda and Ricciardo to be a shoot-out for the seat alongside Verstappen. As it transpired, even consistent top-10 finishes from the former weren’t enough to be taken seriously by Horner, even though he has continuously impressed Helmut Marko.

Despite all of the speculation and external noises surrounding his future, Perez has remained adamant throughout that he would continue with Red Bull beyond 2024. Working in the Mexican’s favour is his commercial viability, and his willingness to play the second driver role alongside Verstappen.

Speaking about his new deal, Perez said: "I am delighted to be staying here to continue our journey together and contribute to this team's great history for two more years.

"Being part of the team is an immense challenge, and one I love. We have a great challenge this year and I have full trust in the whole team that the future is bright here and I am excited to be part of it."