F1 News
'Verstappen has a say in who his teammate is at Red Bull Racing'
Since the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, Sergio Perez had a troubling weekend every time. Even with a contract extension, the Mexican driver cannot get the best out of his Red Bull car, and as a result, struggles week in, week out. Former team owner Eddie Jordan names the reason why 'Checo' cannot fight against his teammate, Max Verstappen.
Even as Red Bull Racing are not as dominant as the Austrian team were back in 2023, Max Verstappen is still a force. The Dutchman has won seven Grands Prix out of 12 this season and can always maximise the amount of points he scores. On the other hand, the last time Sergio Perez could step on the podium was at the Chinese Grand Prix.
"Nice guys don’t win anything, that’s the problem. And Checo was a nice guy. Can you imagine Checo in Lando’s position [in Austria]. He should have been fighting with Max [Verstappen], but he is not," Eddie Jordan said on the podcast he co-hosts with David Coulthard, Formula for Success. He continued with a striking statement: "And never will. And never could!"
Perez currently trails the reigning world champion by 137 points in the drivers' standings, and he is only in P6, with the two Mercedes drivers also approaching him thanks to the German's improved performance. Should the Mexican not improve after the Hungarian and Belgian Grands Prix, Red Bull Racing could trigger a clause which would lead to Perez leaving the team.
'Max wants Perez'
Still, Jordan believes Perez is someone Max Verstappen would like his teammate to be. "Max wants him in the team, and of course, if anyone has to consider, Max has a fair bit of say as to who his teammate is, and that’s very clear that he would prefer Checo in there than he would with Carlos Sainz in there."