News of Sergio Perez signing a contract extension with Red Bull comes as no surprise, given his recent form. The Mexican driver, who recently won the Monaco GP, has secured himself a spot in one of F1’s leading teams till at least the end of 2024. But it’s also a move with some significant consequences for the driver market.
Red Bull has an eager line-up of junior drivers waiting in the wings for their big F1 break, notably India’s Jehan Daruvala – who is also currently the leading Red Bull junior in the F2 championship. We delve into how Perez’s new contract could impact Daruvala’s F1 chances.
Perez the right fit for Red Bull
It’s been a fairytale F1 journey for Perez, who was at the risk of leaving F1 altogether at the end of 2020. Since then he’s proven to be a dependable points scorer for Red Bull Racing, with his recent Monaco GP victory only cementing that status. In fact, he’s just 15 points off championship leader Max Verstappen in the standings, putting him very much in title contention.
But more crucially for Red Bull, he’s proven to be a good team player. His defence against Lewis Hamilton played a pivotal role in Verstappen winning the 2021 title at Abu Dhabi. More recently in Spain, he followed team orders and let Verstappen through, despite calling the order “unfair”.
Daruvala’s F2 form
Red Bull has five junior drivers competing in F2 right now, one of them being Jehan Daruvala.
Speaking with Autocar India earlier this year, Daruvala already knew that 2022 would be a make-or-break season for his F1 hopes. “This year is probably going to be my last year of F2. So if I want to go to F1, this has to be the year that I perform well and show everyone that I am good,” he’d said.
He’s delivered a much stronger performance this season, with four podium finishes in five rounds and a third place standing in the overall order – making him the leading Red Bull junior in the championship and the most experienced.
Looking at the other Red Bull juniors, there’s Juri Vips, who earned an F1 practice outing with Red Bull in Spain. He’s shown promising pace, but his season so far has been marred by some costly errors. Liam Lawson had a strong start with two podiums in Bahrain and a victory in Saudi Arabia, but he hasn’t been back on the podium since then. Reigning F3 champion Dennis Hauger and Honda protégé Ayumu Iwasa are still too fresh in the game to be in contention for a move up to F1.
Red Bull’s got one of the strongest driver development programmes out there; you simply need to look at the current Formula 1 grid for proof. Out of 20 drivers, seven are graduates of Red Bull’s programme. But this is where Perez’s contract extension comes in.
With the seats at Red Bull filled till 2024, the team is in no hurry to really promote a junior driver. Moreover, strong form in F2 is no guarantee of an F1 seat; just take a look at reigning F2 champion Oscar Piastri, who’s had to settle for a reserve driver role at Alpine.
What about Red Bull’s sister team AlphaTauri, then?
The Gasly and Albon angle
As it stands, it doesn’t look like there will be a spot free at AlphaTauri next year. Pierre Gasly’s contract runs until the end of 2023 and after a rather disappointing rookie season, Yuki Tsunoda is also showing improved form this year. The Japanese driver has outscored his teammate so far in 2022. He’s already shown he has the raw talent, and more time at AlphaTauri will only help further iron out errors.
But there could be an open seat in 2024 once Gasly’s contract is over. AlphaTauri (earlier Toro Rosso) has always served as a training and testing ground for young Red Bull drivers, and is meant to filter out the best of the best for the parent team. Red Bull signing Perez makes it rather clear that the chances of Gasly graduating to the team are slim, no matter how strong his performance is at AlphaTauri.
It would only make sense for him to look for a seat elsewhere. Daniel Ricciardo’s dismal recent form and long-standing rumours of Sebastian Vettel looking to retire could very well make McLaren or Aston Martin potential options.
And Red Bull has yet another ace up its sleeve. Alex Albon returned to the grid this year after a year off, having lost his Red Bull drive to Perez at the end of 2020. His form at Williams has been impressive and he’s been the team’s only points scorer so far in 2022. He’s another potential candidate, alongside all the Red Bull juniors, should there be a vacant AlphaTauri seat.
So while Daruvala’s chances to move up to F1 next year appear to be slim, there’s hope for 2024. The picture will only become clearer once more pieces of the driver market fall into place.
Also see:
Monaco F2: Daruvala returns to podium