In a revealing post-mortem on his time at Red Bull Racing and the team`s challenging 2024 Formula 1 season, former driver Sergio Perez has pointed a finger at significant personnel changes, citing the departure of technical mastermind Adrian Newey as a catalyst for a multitude of issues.
Newey, renowned for designing championship-winning cars, stepped back from his chief technical officer role midway through the 2024 campaign. According to Perez, this move marked a turning point, triggering what he described as “a lot more problems” for the dominant outfit.
While Red Bull initially carried their unparalleled 2023 form into the start of 2024, their performance seemed to plateau or even dip as the season progressed. Despite Max Verstappen securing a remarkable fourth consecutive drivers` championship, the team finished third in the constructors` standings, trailing both McLaren and Ferrari – a stark contrast to their previous dominance. It appears even the most brilliant driver can`t entirely compensate for underlying structural shifts.
Perez also highlighted the subsequent departure of Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley, who left in August 2024 to become Team Principal at Sauber (soon to be Audi), as another fundamental loss impacting the team`s stability.
Reflecting on his own performance trajectory, which saw a strong start in 2024 followed by a significant decline in the latter half, Perez suggested external pressures exacerbated by the team contributed to the difficulties. Despite signing a contract extension in Monaco, he claims Red Bull did not adequately shield him from constant speculation about his future. “It would have been easy for the team to protect me and say, ‘You know what? We have a driver signed for the next two years’,” Perez stated, implying a lack of decisive support.
This persistent uncertainty, according to Perez, created significant pressure within his garage, affecting the engineering team and ultimately costing them performance. It’s a curious scenario: a team so successful, yet seemingly unable to manage internal narratives and protect its assets, leading to self-inflicted wounds.
Adding a layer of intrigue, Perez concluded with the assertion that he has learned from a “very good source” that Red Bull now regrets the decision to let him go. A touch of vindication, perhaps, for a driver who saw his tenure end abruptly despite a recent contract renewal.
As Adrian Newey embarks on a new chapter as Managing Technical Partner at Aston Martin and Jonathan Wheatley prepares Sauber for its Audi era, Red Bull is left to navigate the future without two figures Perez believes were fundamental pillars. The struggles of Verstappen`s subsequent teammates only seem to underscore the point that the “great team” Perez described as key to their advantage might have been more fragile than its trophy cabinet suggested, allegedly “fall[ing] apart, little by little.”