Perez 'Having His Best Season' With Red Bull So Far According To Team Boss

Wednesday, 10 April 2024 at 10:47

Red Bull's motorsport advisor Helmut Marko suggested after the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix that Sergio Perez is having the best season with Red Bull so far.

Sergio Perez has finished in points during every race of the season so far. The 34-year-old has collected three second-place finishes and one fifth-place.

His career is on the line in 2024, and this seems to have helped his performance. The Mexican driver has only been getting closer to Max Verstappen throughout the first four rounds.

The Japanese Grand Prix was a critical point for Checo because he never qualified on the front row at this circuit, and the race at Suzuka was the low point of his season last year.

Coming to Japan, Perez had a lot to prove, and he made a statement already in qualifying when he almost outperformed his triple World Champion teammate on the final lap in Q3.

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Red Bull's team principal, Christian Horner, revealed he had a bet with the 34-year-old on whether he would put it on the front row, and he was probably quite happy to lose it this time.

Horner also made it clear that Perez remains Red Bull's priority for next year and that "it is his seat to lose." If the Mexican driver was able to retain his current level of performance, Red Bull would most likely extend his contract.

Concerning Perez's performance throughout the whole weekend in Japan, Helmut Marko wrote in his column for Speed Week:

"Checo was also very solid. He was unlucky at the pit stop, but he got himself back into the game with a great maneuver against Hamilton in the R160 corner. He's definitely having his best season with us so far."

If you looked purely at the results, Perez's start of the 2023 season was even better, as he already had two wins after the fourth round. However, his performance went downhill after that.

While the Mexican seems to have the right mindset this time around, it remains to be seen whether he can stay as close to the triple-world champion throughout the season as he is currently.