“Doesn’t Matter if Daniel Is Here…”: Unconcerned Sergio Perez Plays Down Ricciardo’s Red Bull Return Despite Mounting Pressure

Sergio Perez has completed two years at Red Bull and achieved his career-best result last year. He contributed 305 points to the team’s total of 759 and helped them win the elusive constructors’ championship. Despite that, he was no challenge to the enigma that is Max Verstappen. Red Bull has now tasted unprecedented success and will be in no mood to let go of it any time soon. That puts the Mexican driver in a difficult situation as he has no choice but to prove his worth. To top that, he has Daniel Ricciardo ready to pounce on the first opportunity to replace him and gain a seat in a regular driver’s role. Checo is not too concerned with his presence, though.

Red Bull launched their new livery for the 2023 season on Friday. While the livery unveiling was an underwhelming experience for the fans, the announcement of the team’s partnership with Ford, beginning the 2026 season was a big headliner. Speaking after the event, Checo let his feelings known about Daniel’s role in the team.

Crash quoted Perez after Red Bull’s 2023 livery launch as saying, “When you are at Red Bull Racing you have to perform at your best, it doesn’t matter if Daniel is here or not because Red Bull can pick pretty much any driver from the grid.”

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Perez also said that having Daniel around on race weekends will be beneficial.

Helmut Marko assures Sergio Perez of his place on the team

Earlier last month, Ricciardo revealed the intricate details of his contract with Red Bull. According to the terms of the agreement, if a situation arises when either of the regular drivers is unable to race, it will be Liam Lawson who will race in their place, not the Honey Badger. Then what role will Daniel play in the team? Team consultant Helmut Marko explained.

Speaking with Servus TV, he said, “We have to remember that we are a great team.”

“We also have the largest number of sponsors on the grid. This means that we also have many commitments every year, such as car shows and roadshows in the United States,” he added. “Who can do it better than Ricciardo with his smile, his shoeys and I don’t know what else he has up his sleeve?”

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For now, it seems like Checo’s place is safe. But will that change if things were to get spicy between him and Max in 2023? We shall see.