Marc Priestley believes a driver in a top Formula 1 team is ‘not good enough’ and the strategy to keep him is ‘going to cost them’ in the long run.
The driver market for the 2025 season has started to take shape as both Alpine, Haas, and Williams have yet to confirm their full lineup. Red Bull announced they secured Sergio Perez for the next two seasons, but his performances of recent have led some to question whether it is the best move for the team.
The 2024 season was one of the most dominant years for a car and driver combination when Red Bull and Max Verstappen won 19 out of the 22 races. By contrast, Perez won two races and finished in second behind the Dutchman on just four occasions.
While Perez secured Red Bull’s first one-two in the Drivers’ Championship, former McLaren mechanic Priestley has questioned whether it was the right move when speaking on The Chequered Flag podcast.
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Sergio Perez ‘not good enough’ to be at top level F1 team
Perez will start the Spanish Grand Prix from 11th on the grid after setting the eighth fastest time that was nearly seven-tenths off the pole lap set by Lando Norris.
He starts lower down the grid owing to a penalty incurred after the Canadian Grand Prix when he drove his significantly damaged car back to the pit lane, which the stewards deemed was done in an unsafe manner.
Priestley believes his pace deficit to teammate Verstappen will make a lot of people question why Red Bull recently extended his contract up until the end of the 2026 season.
“It’s not good enough and people at home will be sitting there thinking ‘Why on earth did Red Bull just resign him if he’s not performing to this level?’
“A fair question that a lot of people in F1 can legitimately ask. It’s a lot more about politics, it’s about keeping the other side of the garage happy, moving forward, and trying to hang on to Max Verstappen as much as possible. In terms of results, this is going to cost them. This strategy is going to cost them.”
Sergio Perez must improve form
Perez appeared to lose control of his RB20 in the wet-to-dry conditions in Canada, which caused him to slide into the barriers and damage the rear of his car.
Marko was unhappy with the punishment Perez received and compared his penalty to a similar situation involving Lewis Hamilton at the 2020 British Grand Prix.
Even though he has the backing of Red Bull, it is clear that Perez needs to improve his form to justify having one of the best seats on the grid. Martin Brundle remarked that he forgot the Mexican was in the race at Montreal, while Jacques Villeneuve pointed to a worrying trend.
His best finishing position was second at the Bahrain, Saudi Arabian, and Japanese Grands Prix but in the last two races, he was classified in 18th.
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