« They are very sorry »: Perez reveals Red Bull’s regrets

In an exclusive interview on the podcast Desde el Paddock, Sergio Perez shared his version of the events regarding his departure from Red Bull at the end of 2024. The Mexican directly points to the responsibility of the Austrian team for the deterioration of his working environment and reveals that the team now regrets its decision.

A toxic climate created by the team itself

Perez gives a straightforward speech regarding how Red Bull handled his situation. The former driver denounces the creation of a toxic environment that ultimately harmed the entire team. “In the end, that’s how this sport works. Decisions were made because there was too much pressure that they ended up creating themselves,” he explains.

The Mexican recalls the circumstances of this negative spiral, which dates back to his contract extension. « I had a signed contract in Monaco, but from the next race, everyone was talking about my future even though I already had a signed contract. » A situation that Red Bull could have avoided according to him: « It would have been easy for the team to protect me and say: ‘You know what? We have a driver signed for the next two years.’ But that wasn’t the case. From then on, no one talked about anything other than Red Bull race after race. »

This poor management had direct repercussions on the working atmosphere in his camp. In the end, there was a lot of pressure on my side of the garage… it put a lot of pressure on the engineers, on everyone who was involved, and I think that in the end, it ended up costing us a lot, he laments.

The collapse after the departures of Newey and Wheatley

For Perez, Red Bull’s decline finds its origin in a series of strategic departures that weakened the team. The first major blow occurred with Adrian Newey’s departure in May 2024. « We didn’t dominate in an era like Mercedes did, who had an advantage with the engine. Here, the advantage was very small, and we had a great team. When Adrian Newey left, I think that’s when many more problems began. »

The departure of sporting director Jonathan Wheatley in August 2024 to join Sauber/Audi worsened the situation. « Then Jonathan Wheatley left, who was a fundamental part of the team », continues Perez. This hemorrhage of key talents coincides perfectly with the drop in performance of the Mexican driver, who was never able to replicate his strong performances from the first six races after Newey’s departure in the last 16 rounds of the season.

The team’s performances confirm this observation. Indeed, Red Bull, which dominated the early part of the 2024 season, finished third in the constructors’ championship behind McLaren and Ferrari, with Max Verstappen having to persevere to win his fourth consecutive drivers’ title.

Substitutes who validate the regrets

The failure of Perez’s successors lends credence to his comments and explains the regrets mentioned. Liam Lawson lasted only two Grand Prix before being replaced by Yuki Tsunoda, who failed to finish better than ninth in eight races for Red Bull. A situation that contrasts with the criticism made at the time by Helmut Marko, who blamed Perez for depriving the team of its bonuses after the loss of the constructors’ championship.

This instability continues in 2025, where Red Bull is now in fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship, 212 points behind the leader McLaren, as the team has not regained the stability that characterized the Perez-Verstappen era.

« They are very sorry »

The Mexican driver reveals he has been informed that Red Bull now regrets its decision. “I know deep down they are very sorry, I know it from a very good source,” he confides. A revelation he accepts without personal satisfaction: “People might think I’m happy about it, but no… we had a great team, and in the end, it collapsed little by little.”

The 2024 season had started well for Perez, who finished in the top 5 during the first six races. Despite a contract extension until 2026 signed after his strong start to the season, Red Bull ultimately decided to release him before the extension even took effect. And as the Austrian team struggles to return to its past performances, the regrets expressed by the former Mexican driver resonate with a certain bitterness.