“We Failed”: Red Bull Mastermind Concedes Defeat on Major Front Despite Max Verstappen’s Record-Laden Season

Red Bull just capped off the most dominant season in Formula 1 history. Max Verstappen and his RB-19 paired up to deliver 19 of 22 race wins this season, most of which the Dutchman finished well ahead of the field. At this point, we sound like a broken record, reiterating the number of records that Max broke this year. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the other side of the Red Bull garage.

Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez, had a mediocre year, to say the least. He only had two race wins this entire season and a handful of podium finishes. Add that to his abysmal qualifying record, and it’s a surprise he managed to secure P2 in the Drivers’ Championship ahead of Lewis Hamilton. In a shocking turn of events, though, Red Bull assumed some of the blame for the Mexican’s subpar season.

The Milton Keynes outfit doesn’t mince words when criticizing its drivers. So when one of Red Bull’s key figures admitted to taking responsibility for Perez’s fluctuating and shocking form in 2023, it raised some eyebrows. This was considering he was consistently slower than Verstappen by a considerable margin in the same car, not to mention other drivers as well, which is what made this admission a little strange.

Pierre Wache, Red Bull’s technical director, shouldered some responsibility for Perez’s struggle with the RB19, resulting in a bad season. As quoted by formule1.nl, Wache said after the Abu Dhabi GP, “A fast car is a car that allows the driver to perform to the maximum. We failed in that respect because only one driver – Max, in this case – could handle it well. That is Max’s talent. He managed to use the car well throughout the season and under different conditions. On the other hand, we, in turn, may not have properly understood Checo and what he needs to get the potential out of the RB-19.” [Translated by Google]

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Going into the ’24 season, however, Perez will remain in the hot seat. While the Mexican Minister of Defence has a contract until the end of 2024, one can’t help but feel he’s running on borrowed time. So, what must he do to ensure he stays at Red Bull?

Mission 2025: Horner’s advice for Perez to continue partnering Max Verstappen

It is an open secret that Christian Horner is looking for alternative drivers for the 2025 season. In fact, that is a key reason why Daniel Ricciardo suddenly found himself with a race seat just before the summer break. While Horner has mentioned that he will monitor Yuki Tsunoda, Ricciardo, and Perez for the “open” spot, that might not be a complete list.

For instance, if McLaren fails to deliver another car for Lando Norris, who knows? He might just cut his contract short and accept one of the offers Red Bull has made him to join the Milton Keynes team in 2025. That being said, Horner still believes in Perez and gave him some friendly advice ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix that he must apply even in 2024. “The problem is for Checo, he is comparing himself to Max. What he needs to do is forget about Max and focus on himself.”

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For now, after the 2023 season, all Perez can do is put his head down, deliver clean race results, and hope for the best. Would someone else have done a better job with the RB19 than Sergio Perez?