Red Bull is openly considering the possibility of dropping Sergio Perez at the end of the season, despite his contract for 2025 and 2026.
The Mexican driver's place alongside Max Verstappen has been uncertain for some time, both before and after he signed his new deal.
That uncertainty is now intensifying as Liam Lawson, who replaced Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull's junior team RB, faces off in a clear comparison with Yuki Tsunoda.
"Perez has a contract for 2025," Red Bull's F1 advisor Dr. Helmut Marko said to Sky Deutschland at the US Grand Prix. "If he delivers with performance, that will not be called into question. But Formula 1 is a competitive sport, which is why Daniel Ricciardo was also replaced."
Perez, 34, saw an improvement in his performances recently, especially as Verstappen faced struggles with Red Bull's less competitive 2024 car. However, now that the car has regained its pace, the gap between Perez and Verstappen has widened again.
"Checo made up one place," Marko commented after the Austin sprint race. "That's not really what we expected.
"The gap to Max was also quite big in terms of laptime," Marko added.
As for the rookie Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda, Marko expressed much more enthusiasm.
"Yuki fought really well against the Haas drivers, but in the end, he had no chance, because they were much faster on the straights," he said, amid speculation that Honda is pushing hard for Tsunoda to be promoted to Red Bull Racing for 2025.
Regarding the 22-year-old New Zealander Lawson, Marko noted, "He was very good from the practice session. He was on par with Tsunoda or even faster.
"He had a problem with track limits, but his performance was impeccable, especially when you consider that it is his first time on this circuit. It's also the first time in a long time that he is back in the car.
"You could say it has been a success so far," Marko told Servus TV.
Lawson even managed to get under the skin of F1 veteran Fernando Alonso, who called the blonde youngster an "idiot" after an intense wheel-to-wheel battle.
"A bit too much action, for sure," Alonso told reporters. "He has six races to prove a lot, but it's certainly not the best approach that he's taking. But hey, it's his career that's at stake, not mine."
Marko praised Lawson's attitude and performance, saying his return to F1 "shows again that you have to give young people a chance."
Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher agreed, saying, "If he continues like this, he will be Verstappen's teammate."
