Sergio Perez Reportedly Offered Ferrari Reserve Driver Role for 2021, Confirms Having ‘Options’ for 2022

Following a rather painful Bahrain Grand Prix race, Sergio Perez held a press conference, stating his possible options for 2021. In the process, the Mexican revealed that he had gotten an offer from “one of the big teams.”

Although there has been no official announcement on which team is needing Perez’s service, it is rumored to be Ferrari.

Apparently, the offer wasn’t for a full-time drive. Instead, the mysterious team wants Perez to be their reserve driver for 2021. By the looks of it, Perez is considering the offer and will most likely go forward with it, if Red Bull prefers Alex Albon for next season.

“Being a reserve driver for a large team in 2021 is under discussion,” he said. “But we are still talking about it because I don’t want to travel to every race.”

The three big teams in Formula 1 at the moment are Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull. Amid the three teams, Ferrari have always been in need of a reliable third driver in their team. Hence, the fact that Perez is there for the taking would tempt the Maranello-based outfit to grab him.

But who knows? It could be their rivals, Mercedes as well, considering Perez has been driving a Mercedes-powered car for almost a decade.

Both these teams have quite a lot of drivers to choose from in times of emergencies. However, Perez’s stats and his abundant experience in F1 could be the primary reason why the top teams are aching to bring in the Racing Point driver.

Sergio Perez having options for 2022 Return

According to SoyMotor, the Mexican revealed that he has options available if the Red Bull signing doesn’t go through successfully.

“I already have some options to return in 2022 so I don’t it would be a problem,” he said. “I cannot guarantee that I will be on the grid in 2022, because if I finally take a sabbatical I will have to reflect and give myself time to decide.”

He also opened up that Red Bull are struggling to make a decision regarding their number 2 driver. Apparently, they have set the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as the deadline.

“Red Bull have told me that they are going to make the decision after the Abu Dhabi race, and only then will we know if they want to be with me or not. Right now they don’t even know what they want to do with their team,” he said.

If Red Bull are going to make a decision on their number 2 driver based on this year’s performance, Perez definitely stands out. Despite the COVID-19 misery striking him at a crucial time, Perez is still in the race for a top-four finish in the drivers’ table.

Sergio Perez’s gut-wrenching Bahrain GP

Perez has only once failed to finish a race in the top 10 this season, and that DNF occurred at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The Racing Point driver always had the upper hand over Albon through most parts of the race and was looking like he could secure his first consecutive podium finishes.

However, his power unit gave up, just two laps away from the chequered flag. Despite trying hard to keep his car running, a fire forced Perez to park his car just meters after turn 10. Perez portrayed a gutted figure as he watched Albon take over his podium spot.

Overall, It’s not all for Perez, as Red Bull are still considering him for 2021. The fact that Perez is in his prime will still keep him over Albon in terms of performance. Hence, with just two races to go, will the Racing Point driver manage to impress Red Bull and steal the seat from Albon? Only time will tell.