A few miles away in Abu Dhabi in the Yas Marina Circuit, one of the foremost venues in the Middle East that hosts F1 motorsport events, has hosted the ultimate, historic race of Mexican legendary race car driver Sergio Michel “Checo” Perez Mendoza. Valtteri Bottas, a proud Finnish racer collided with Perez in the very first lap of the race, causing Perez to put an end to his career. Outshined by his teammate Max Verstappen for the majority of 2024, this was the last loss to his 2024 winless season, a bow to the gift presented to Perez by Red Bull, who had initially agreed to a contract with Perez up to 2026.
Constant pressure from a weak season performed by Sergio Perez, stemming from never finishing higher than 6th places in 14 races, is the canary in the coal mine for Sergio’s tenure with Red Bull.
“Finishing second or third in the end makes no difference,” Perez says, “So, we really want to win it.”
Red Bull had initially wanted to cut Perez in the beginning of the season, but had a change of heart and wanted to give Perez a second chance. In May Perez had signed a contract that would ultimately end in 2026, however his 2024 performance unfortunately changed the future of this plan. Perez, who had been chosen over Carlos Sainz, joined Red Bull in 2021, was strongly considered by Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, despite Perez losing three races in Miami, Monaco, and Imola where he finished eighth, fourth, and collided with another racer on the inaugural lap, finishing 16th in that race in Monaco. There were high hopes at the time of the contract signing, strong belief in Perez and teammate Verstappen, with team principal Horner stating,
“Continuity and stability are important for the team and both Checo and Max are a successful and robust partnership.”
Horner has a great amount of respect for Perez, despite all the losses by Perez, every dog has its day.
“Checo started the season so strongly, four podiums out of five races. It felt like he’d taken off where he’d left off last year. But then really from Monte Carlo, that race onwards, it’s been a very tough year for him, and we’ve tried everything with him and supporting him and basically he’s come to his own conclusion that I think that now is the right time to step away from Formula 1 to take a bit of time out.”
22-year old New Zealander Liam Lawson will be replacing 34-year old Perez.
“While Checo will not race for the team next season, he will always be an extremely popular team member and a treasured part of our history,” team captain Horner proudly exclaims.
Fellow teammate, well ex-teammate Verstappen posted on his social media saying,
“It’s been an absolute pleasure driving alongside you,” along with a heartfelt message, “We’ve had some amazing moments together that I’ll always remember.”
Regardless of his final seasonal performance, Sergio “Checo” Perez without a doubt made his nation proud. Born and raised in Guadalajara, Jalisco, starting out in kart racing at the age of 6, Perez sets the top echelon standard of what it takes to grace the illustrious Formula 1 race track.
