Red Bull Racing ended speculation about who would be lining up alongside Max Verstappen next season by confirming that Sergio Perez had signed a new contract.
After starting the season brightly, Sergio Perez’s form has dipped and the timing of the announcement has confirmed many within Formula 1.
The official announcement from Red Bull on their website started the headline, ‘Checo Is Here To Stay Until 2026’.
However, it might not be as straightforward as that for the Mexican driver.
Journalist Craig Slater was speaking on the Sky Sports F1 YouTube channel about Perez’s new deal.
It may not be guaranteed that Perez will be part of the Red Bull set-up until the end of the first season of the new regulations.
He might have to up his game to make sure he’s still with the team at the beginning of the 2026 season.
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Sergio Perez’s new Red Bull contract not guaranteed until the end of 2026
Very few drivers would expect to be handed a new deal after back-to-back races where they’ve been comprehensively beaten by their teammate.
However, that’s the situation that Perez found himself in after scraping into the points in Imola and failing to complete the first lap in Monaco after a heavy collision with Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg.
The most concerning aspect of those races was Perez once again failing in qualifying, something Christian Horner admitted that he needed to address at the end of last year.
Unfortunately, the Canadian Grand Prix saw Perez record back-to-back Q1 exits while Max Verstappen set the joint-fastest time in the session.
Perez may have finished runner-up to Verstappen last season but that was when Red Bull had arguably the most dominant car in F1 history.
Unfortunately, Perez hasn’t closed the gap to his teammate but the rest of the grid has and that puts him in a precarious position.
While Red Bull have suggested that Perez has a contract until the end of 2026, it might not be as simple as that.
It’s almost certain that Perez will have to up his game to make sure he’s not replaced sooner rather than later.
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Red Bull contract no guarantee of Sergio Perez’s future
Talking about the Mexican’s new deal, Slater said: “Sergio Perez has signed a contract extension with Red Bull, it’s for two years.
“Does he have to meet some performance targets if he’s to get that second year though?
“An insider has told me probably that is the case. What does it all mean for Max Verstappen?
“Well, maybe if Red Bull had signed Carlos Sainz to go alongside Verstappen, it would have been a sign that they were expecting that Verstappen would leave in the next couple of years.
“Given they haven’t done that, is this a sign that Red Bull are confident that Verstappen will stay? His contract is until 2028 but we do know he can get out of that contract when he wants to.
“If Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s special advisor leaves, Verstappen can leave and Marko is prepared to leave if Verstappen wants him to.”
How uncertain is Sergio Perez’s Red Bull future?
It’s not a surprise that Red Bull are keeping their options as open as possible as the Constructors Championship becomes more and more competitive.
In effect, Perez has signed a contract until the end of 2025 with Red Bull having the option to extend his deal for a further year if they think he’s driving well enough.
It isn’t known what level Perez has to reach to activate the extension in his deal, but the unique situation Red Bull are in on the grid means that Horner and Helmut Marko can switch their driver line-ups very easily, with drivers contracted to the organisation rather than an individual team.
It’s one of the reasons why Liam Lawson is currently the reserve driver for both Red Bull and Visa Cash App RB.
If Yuki Tsunoda continues to impress or Daniel Ricciardo improves his form, it would be relatively easy for either driver to take Perez’s seat and Lawson to step up into the V-CARB set-up.
While Perez technically has plenty to look forward to in Formula 1, he’ll also know that his current performances aren’t enough to keep him in his current seat.
The post ‘Insider has told me’: Sky journalist shares what Sergio Perez must do to fulfil his new Red Bull contract appeared first on F1 Oversteer.