Carlos Sainz admits he doesn't match the "profile" of what Red Bull requires for Max Verstappen's teammate, as questions over Sergio Perez's future with the team intensify.
Despite Perez's insistence that his 2025 contract is secure, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner and advisor Dr Helmut Marko have been increasingly vocal about the Mexican driver's ongoing performance issues.
"With our performance today, we have absolutely no chance of second place, let alone first place," Marko told ORF after Thursday practice in Las Vegas, referring to the constructors' championship. "That was clear for a while, because if you compare Checo's points with Max's points, you know what the problem is."
Horner echoed the sentiment, hinting that Perez's 2025 deal may not be set in stone. "We are aware of the situation of all of the drivers who are bound to us by contract," Horner stated. "We could even drag it out until Melbourne, although it's inevitable that at the end of the year we will sit down and examine all the information that is available to us."
The underperformance of Perez, 34, has reportedly opened the door for alternatives, including Red Bull junior Liam Lawson and the impressive but Williams-contracted Franco Colapinto. However, even when Carlos Sainz was a free agent, Red Bull opted not to pursue him, despite his previous experience as Verstappen's Toro Rosso teammate.
Sainz, who will join Williams in 2025, acknowledges the complexity of Formula 1 team decisions. "Everyone is a victim of politics in F1, not just me," the Spaniard said in Las Vegas. "I don't want to play the victim in this situation, far from it, because all drivers are victims of the many variables and many things that teams take into account when signing a driver. And it's not just speed and talent.
"In that sense, I see it now much more philosophically, especially in the case of Red Bull. I think I'm simply not the driver that Red Bull is looking for at the moment, in the team situation that they have. I might not be the profile of the driver that they prefer to have."
When asked if Red Bull is looking for a clear 'number 2' driver to support Verstappen, Sainz responded, "I didn't say that."
