F1 News: Red Bull Chief Stands Firm On Sergio Perez After Helmut Marko's Bold Comments

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has remained adamant that Sergio Perez will be driving for the team next year as per his contract which is due to expire at the end of 2024.

This comes after Red Bull motorsport advisor Dr Helmut Marko went back on his word ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix, explaining that Perez's future will be based on his current performance.

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During an interview with Kleine Zeitung, Marko commented:

"Nothing is 100 per cent certain in Formula 1, there simply is no such thing.

"There are always performance-related situations somewhere that need to be talked about. We'll take a look at it and discuss how to proceed in Zandvoort, then we'll know more."

Following the race in Zandvoort where Max Verstappen took his eleventh win of the season and Perez lost his third-place to Pierre Gasly due to a penalty, Horner told the media:

"Checo's situation for next year is clear. He's a Red Bull Racing driver. We have an agreement with him. And irrelevant of agreements, we're pleased with the job he's doing. You saw his drive today. He was unlucky with the pit lane with the speed limit.

"He's second in the World Championship. He's the only driver other than Max to win one Grand Prix this year. It's easy to beat up on him when the barometer is so high on the other side, but he will be our driver in 2024.

"You can only look at the performance on the timesheet and the result sheet. If Max wasn't there, Checo would have won another four or five races. He's doing his job. He's second in the World Championship. You saw his performance today. He was unlucky to get the speeding fine. Hopefully, he can add to his wins before the end of the year."

Red Bull has dominated the 2023 season winning all thirteen races so far. Verstappen's incredible performance has only fuelled the rumours of Perez losing his seat with the team. However, it seems that if he can keep second place in the drivers' standings at the end of the year, he will continue with the team.

Verstappen currently has a 138-point lead on Perez. The Mexican driver is now 33 points ahead of Fernando Alonso who is in third position.

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