Perez: It was a problem if I was faster than Max

Sergio Perez has opened up on the struggles he faced during his Red Bull days. The Mexican driver, who has been paired with Valtteri Bottas to lead Cadillac next season, explained that everything he did was a problem, including being faster than Max Verstappen. 

It came as no surprise when Perez’s contract was axed at the end of the 2024 season, even though he had signed a multi-year contract extension several months earlier.

Verstappen won his fourth consecutive world championship title that year, but Red Bull had failed to capture the constructor’s cup, and Checo had most of the blame. 

While Verstappen had shown up race after race, despite facing stiff competition from McLaren’s Lando Norris, Perez had a hard time, finishing at the bottom of the grid and failing to earn points for the team. 

The next season, he was replaced with Liam Lawson, who was eventually booted out for Yuki Tsonada. Both drivers failed to provide Verstappen the needed support, causing them to finish third on the constructor’s standings.

Clearly, the plot to find a suitable wingman for the Dutch driver has failed, but Perez may have provided some insight as to why. According to him, before he left, the team always found faults with what he did.

He said, “I was on the best team, but it was complicated because being Max’s teammate at Red Bull is the worst job there is in F1. I knew what I was up against.

“At Red Bull everything was a problem; if I was faster than Max it was a problem, a very tense atmosphere was created; it was a problem if you were faster than Max. If you were too slow and Max was slow, then everything was a problem.”

His statement is not at all new, as the team culture was quite evident in 2024, when it seemed all bets were placed on Max. For certain, when you have a driver like Max on your team, all attention and help should be rendered to him, but should that come at the cost of the other teammate?

Perez will bring his talents to the Cadillac F1 team, set to make their debut this 2026 season. His presence, as well as Bottas’, has been missed, and the grid finally feels like it’s complete again.