Sergio Perez has announced his exit from the Red Bull Formula 1 team after four seasons with the squad.
As widely expected, the Mexican will vacate the seat alongside world champion Max Verstappen after a tough 2024 campaign in which he struggled for performance and dropped to eighth in the drivers’ championship.
Pérez’s historically bad lack of form had long left his future in doubt, despite him originally having signed a contract back in June that ran through until the end of 2026.
But following negotiations since the season-closing Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Perez and Red Bull have agreed to end the deal and go their separate ways.
Red Bull has not yet made any announcement about who will replace Perez, but his exit opens the door for it to promote one of its junior drivers from its sister Racing Bulls team.
New Zealander Liam Lawson is favourite to get the nod over the more experienced Yuki Tsunoda for the high-pressure seat alongside Verstappen.
