Sergio Perez news LIVE: F1 latest as Red Bull axe Mexican driver and line up replacement
RB’s Liam Lawson is in pole position to take Sergio Perez’s spot alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull Racing next season
Red Bull have axed Sergio Perez ahead of the 2025 F1 season, ending the Mexican’s four-year stay with the team.
Perez struggled to keep pace not only with world title-winning teammate Max Verstappen but also rivals from McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari, finishing eighth in the drivers’ standings. It also meant Red Bull finished third in the constructors’ championship and ceded their crown to McLaren.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the past four years with Red Bull,” Perez said. “We broke records and reached remarkable milestones.”
While Perez’s future is now in doubt, with no seat currently available on the grid next season, New Zealander Liam Lawson is set for a promotion from sister team RB to drive alongside Verstappen for Red Bull.
Follow all the latest reaction and F1 developments in the live blog below.
Sergio Perez confirms Red Bull exit after disastrous F1 season
Sergio Perez has been dropped by Red Bull for the 2025 F1 season – with Liam Lawson set to be promoted from RB to become Max Verstappen’s teammate.
The world champions, who extended Perez’s deal to the end of the 2025 season at the beginning of June, have made the change following a torrid run of results for the Mexican this year.
The 34-year-old, who has raced in F1 for 14 consecutive seasons, finished eighth in the drivers’ standings – a mammoth 285 points behind teammate and champion Verstappen.
Sergio Perez confirms Red Bull exit after disastrous F1 season
Christian Horner has axed the Mexican as Max Verstappen’s teammate following a torrid 2024 season
After the finale of the 2024 season in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, it is now only 94 days until we do it all again in 2025.
Next year has the potential to be an all-time great Formula 1 season. Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari is the main attraction, but there are also at least four new drivers on the grid next year – rookies Ollie Bearman, Kimi Antonelli, Jack Doohan and Gabriel Bortoleto.
Yet after Max Verstappen won the drivers’ title and McLaren claimed the constructors’ crown, both championships look wide open for next year.
The five burning F1 questions heading into 2025 season
Anticipation is already building towards the new season and the first race on 16 March in Australia
F1 2024 Season award: Rising star
Ollie Bearman
A debut of dreams for the British teenager in Saudi Arabia, filling in seamlessly for Carlos Sainz to score points on his F1 debut for Ferrari.
From that moment on, his 2025 seat at Haas was virtually secured. He took his chance. It did not matter that he finished a lowly 12th in the F2 standings.
Podium places: Gabriel Bortoleto; Franco Colapinto
F1 2024 Season award: Race of the year
Brazilian Grand Prix
A championship-deciding, drama-inducing weekend in Sao Paulo.
Heavy rain meant we had qualifying on Sunday morning and, such is the grid that formed, it looked set to result in a massive points swing in Norris’s favour. There were also five crashes in helter-skelter qualifying minutes.
But the race proved to be a masterclass in wet-weather driving from Verstappen. While others slipped and slid across the racetrack and into the walls, the Dutchman was the epitome of perfection.
Podium places: British Grand Prix; Austrian Grand Prix
F1 2024 Season award: Moment of the year
Lando Norris winning the Miami GP
This was a tough call. But Norris had been waiting for his first F1 victory for so long that, when it came, the jubilation was palpable.
It was also the first indication of McLaren’s rapid race-pace, setting up a thriller of a 2024 season.
Podium places: Lewis Hamilton wins British GP, Max Verstappen wins Brazil GP
F1 2024 season awards: Best driver, biggest shock and worst race
That’s a wrap. After a record-breaking 24 races, the 2024 F1 season concluded on Sunday in Abu Dhabi with Lando Norris guiding McLaren to constructors’ glory.
What a topsy-turvy, constantly evolving season it has been. From Red Bull’s dominance on the track and turmoil in the paddock at the start of the season to multiple winners and riveting racing, there has been drama at every turn.
For the first time since 2021, too, we had a genuine title race, and while Max Verstappen ultimately claimed his fourth successive world championship, Norris pushed him to the final three races.
F1 2024 season awards: Best driver, biggest shock and worst race
After a nine-month, 24-race season, The Independent selects the stars and moments that stand out
Who is Liam Lawson? The driver tipped to take over from Sergio Perez
As reported earlier, The Independent understands Liam Lawson will be the man to take Perez’s seat with the main Red Bull team in 2025 ahead of Yuki Tsunoda.
But who is the young New Zealand driver?
The 22-year-old joined the Red Bull junior team in 2019, and became the reserve driver for Red Bull in 2022. He later made his F1 debut in a reserve role at the 2023 Dutch GP, for AlphaTauri.
After Daniel Ricciardo was dropped after this year’s Singapore GP, Lawson took his place in the rebranded RB team, finishing as high as ninth in Sao Paulo and Austin.
Red Bull adviser drops hint over 2025 F1 seat
Yuki Tsunoda appears to have improved his chances of grabbing a Red Bull seat in the 2025 Formula One season.
The Japanese driver has shone in the post-race Abu Dhabi test, with speculation surrounding Sergio Perez’s future and a decision forthcoming from Christian Horner.
Max Verstappen has described the criticism of Perez as “harsh”, with Tsunoda under consideration to replace ‘Checo’. Yet one of the reasons to look for an alternative to Tsunoda was largely dismissed in Abu Dhabi, with adviser Helmut Marko promising news in the next week.
“On the question of what the driver pairing will look like next year, we will have news in the next days,” Marko said in his Speedweek.com column.
Red Bull adviser drops hint over 2025 seat
Helmut Marko has discussed the impending decision over who will partner Max Verstappen on the grid in 2025, with Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson thought to be the main contenders should Sergio Perez exit
F1 2024 final standings as McLaren beat Ferrari to constructors title
Lando Norris secured a dominant victory at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to win McLaren their first constructors’ championship since 1998.
The 25-year-old’s fourth win of the season meant McLaren held off the charge of Ferrari as team-mate Oscar Piastri finished only 10th after an eventful race for the Australian at the Yas Marina Circuit.
Ferrari pair Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc were second and third to push McLaren all the way but Norris’ win was enough to secure the title.
F1 2024 final standings as McLaren beat Ferrari to constructors title
McLaren have claimed their first constructors’ title since 1998
Horner coy on Red Bull line-up
When asked about the potential replacements for Perez, Horner had this to say: “Now, we have all of the information we need, it’ll be a choice between Yuki [Tsunoda] and Liam [Lawson] and both have got strong credentials.
“We tested Yuki recently in Abu Dhabi, had a chance to work with the engineer team, while Liam has tested a lot with us and driven well. [We’re\ considering all of that. We’ll conclude in the coming days.
“The most important thing for us, to make sure we have two drivers performing as closely as possible.
“We’ll have a Hamilton and Leclerc line-up [at Ferrari], Norris and Piastri [at McLaren], we’ve seen what that’s capable of, George Russell with another newcomer in Kimi Antonelli [at Mercedes] – it’ll be very tight next year. What is the best line-up we can field?”
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