Perez will have a new engineer for the next few races
F1. The Mexican, currently seventh in the drivers' championship, will soon be working with a new engineer. Hugh Bird, his usual engineer, will be away for a few weeks on paternity leave. A new organization which was not foreseen, but which could give the Mexican driver a second wind.
There is a change at Red Bull... but not at the driver level. While the F1 world had fallen asleep with the announcement of Sergio Perez's continued presence within the Red Bull team for the remainder of the season, the Austrian team is making adjustments within its technical staff. Indeed, changes will take place among the engineers, due to the prolonged absence of Hugh Bird, the designated engineer for the Mexican driver, for several weeks, following paternity leave. The Briton is taking time to welcome a new child into his life.
Hugh Bird, an engineer at Perez since 2021, will nevertheless be present this weekend in Zandvoort before taking his leave. During his absence, Richard Wood, performance engineer at Red Bull for 11 years, will temporarily take over as Sergio Perez's race engineer until the Singapore Grand Prix, the 18th round of the championship. At the same time, Richard Cooke, currently a simulator performance engineer, will take over from Wood as a performance engineer. Cooke worked in Max Verstappen's garage last year and contributed to the Dutchman's triumph in 2023.
This structural reorganization comes at a difficult time for Perez, who is experiencing poor performances and disappointing results. However, Red Bull ensures that this change of engineer is not related to the current situation of the Mexican driver. Although there is no connection with his results, this reorganization could nevertheless help Perez regain confidence, as the two men have already lost points this season due to communication issues.
Red Bull hopes that this change will pay off and that the summer break will have allowed Perez to recharge his batteries. The team's management confirmed that Perez will retain his seat in the car until the last race in Abu Dhabi. The leaders of Milton Keynes are convinced that Perez's performances will improve on circuits where he has already excelled in the past.
« Sergio Perez will still be in the Red Bull Racing car after the summer break, as we are now entering races on circuits where he performed well last year, and we are counting on stability », explained Helmut Marko, who supported Christian Horner's decision to keep Perez, despite rumors about Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson.
In parallel, Red Bull is redoubling its efforts for its Mexican driver to regain the form he had at the beginning of the season and to continue contributing to the defense of the title in the constructors' championship, facing a McLaren team that has come back to within just 42 points. Among the solutions considered, the team led by Christian Horner could revert to former specifications of the RB20, before the many upgrades introduced at the Imola Grand Prix, particularly a new floor and a new front wing. These improvements have not worked at all for the former McLaren driver, who has become increasingly uncomfortable behind the wheel of the car as the races go on.
With 10 races remaining in the championship, the case of the Mexican driver raises many questions within Red Bull. The team hopes that their efforts to restore confidence in their driver will pay off and that he will be able to compete at the front again. The answer will come this weekend, with the return of F1 to the Zandvoort circuit.
