Former F1 driver David Coulthard has defended Crimson Bull for changing six-time F1 race winner Sergio Perez with Liam L forward of the upcoming F1 season.
After months of hypothesis, Crimson Bull confirmed after the season-closing Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that Sergio Perez would go away the Austro-British outfit regardless of the deal that will have seen the 34-year-old driver race for the group till the tip of 2026.
The Guadalajara-born driver joined Crimson Bull in 2021, and helped his team-mate Max Verstappen win his first championship title that yr, taking part in a pivotal position on the title-deciding 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Nevertheless, he has didn’t ship a constant efficiency over the past couple of years. Perez has received 5 races with Crimson Bull, and completed second within the Drivers’ Championship final yr, however he has endured intervals throughout which he merely struggled for outright tempo in qualifying.
After a powerful begin to the 2024 season, Crimson Bull had elected to increase his contract by an extra two years which might see Perez race for the Milton Keynes-based outfit till not less than the tip of the 2026 F1 season. Nevertheless, the Mexican struggled for tempo after his contract extension.
Explaining the explanations for Perez’ exit, former Crimson Bull driver David Coulthard reckoned that whereas the Mexican has a constructive character, his exit from the Milton Keynes-based outfit had been primarily based on information.
“Checo [Perez] is an excellent human being, but it surely’s painful to observe the resistance to the information, and I can solely assume it’s a administration play.
“Julian Jakobi is his supervisor — Julian we all know and respect for a few years; [he’s an] clever, good supervisor. However his job is to verify the cash is there.
“Given the connection they’ve had collectively, and the success they’ve had collectively – the wins he’s had – I might select amicable within the face of inevitability moderately than screaming and shouting.”
“I took some warmth from Mexico, all kinds of the same old vitriol, ‘What would you recognize? What have you ever ever achieved?’ and all that good things. However the truth is, I used to be merely basing an opinion on the information.”
The 13-year-old driver defined that the primary cause for Crimson Bull’s determination was that the Austro-British misplaced worthwhile factors within the groups’ championship resulting from Perez’s struggles.
“The information are Checo, if it was a character contest and one of the appreciated drivers within the paddock contest, would nonetheless be within the seat. He’s a superb man.
“He has executed a fantastic job, and he has received numerous Grand Prix… however, final season, he didn’t match Max and it value the group worthwhile factors within the Constructors’ Championship.”
After ousting Perez, Crimson Bull elected to exchange the Mexican with Liam Lawson. The New Zealand native joined the Crimson Bull Junior Programme in 2019 and after a number of junior components successes made his Formulation One debut with Scuderia AlphaTauri on the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix, rather than the injured Daniel Ricciardo.
Reflecting on the choice, Coulthard added: “That’s a giant alternative for Liam Lawson, and a giant stress. However, as I’ve stated within the present earlier than, stress is whenever you really feel you’re not in management. Proper now, Liam will really feel fairly assured. He’s had debut alongside Yuki [Tsunoda].”
“Yuki was understandably disenchanted that, having had a really robust season, he wasn’t given the possibility at Crimson Bull Racing however I assume, finally for Crimson Bull, they requested the query of whether or not they assume he’s a future world champion.”
F1GP United States
