Helmut Marko says his 'ideal' Max Verstappen F1 2025 partner is not Sergio Perez
If Helmut Marko has his way, Sergio Perez could follow Daniel Ricciardo out of the Red Bull exit door as Max Verstappen will 'ideally' be partnered by someone else in 2025
by Daniel Moxon · The MirrorMax Verstappen will be partnered "ideally with a junior" driver in 2025, Helmut Marko has said.
The Red Bull chief's claim has thrust into further doubt the future of Sergio Perez alongside Verstappen. The Mexican signed a new contract earlier this year but almost lost his seat before the summer break and remains in peril despite Daniel Ricciardo having already lost his place with sister squad VCARB.
Liam Lawson has been promoted to replace the ousted Aussie and will be able to test his skills against Yuki Tsunoda over the final six races of the season. Both are graduates of the team's driver development programme.
Lawson was impressive in a five-race stint last season, filling in for Ricciardo while he was out injured, and Red Bull want to see more of what he can do. When analysing the Kiwi's performances, team adviser Marko will be paying especially close attention to how he gets on in comparison to Japanese racer Tsunoda.
He told Austrian broadcaster ORF: "I don't know in how many races [Lawson] was faster than Yuki, but that's why we decided that now is the time to make a comparison with Yuki. Who of the two is the fastest?
"Admittedly, Yuki has improved a lot. He has his emotions under control better. He was sometimes very bad on the radio. Those tirades also slowed him down. In other words, he lost his speed. That bothered me the most. But that's gone now. He's fast and consistent on all circuits."
Marko also said he has a "feeling" that he knows what the line-ups across Red Bull's two F1 teams will be for the 2025 season. And, ominously for Perez, the Austrian referenced successful rookie performances from the likes of Oliver Bearman and Franco Colapinto this year as he suggested they could look towards youth going forward.
The 81-year-old said: "Youth is the trend again. What we used to do, is now being done by Mercedes with [Kimi] Antonelli, Haas with Bearman, and I also hope that Colapinto will end up somewhere. He was thrown in at the deep end [by Williams] and has delivered three great races."
He added that, in 2025, Verstappen - hopefully once again as defending drivers' champion if he can hold off the challenge of Lando Norris - will be partnered "ideally with a junior [team-mate] from our own junior programme."
Tsunoda is the most experienced of the Red Bull academy graduates and has shown impressive development during his time in F1, but has never looked likely to earn promotion to the top team. That could change if he beats Lawson comfortably in the final few weeks of this season, while the New Zealander could similarly thrust himself into contention if he gets the better of the Japanese.
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