Horner: If Perez does well, we'll want to keep him for 2025

There was a lot of speculation regarding Perez during the 2023 F1 season, as despite starting it well with wins in Jeddah and Baku, his form dipped as the season progressed as he struggled to regain his early form, massively outpaced by teammate Max Verstappen.

The pressure kept mounting in Perez who has a valid Red Bull contract for 2024, as even that was under doubt, but the team honored his deal and kept him within the team.

However, for 2025, everything is possible and Red Bull will be spoilt for options as many drivers' contracts will be expiring while Perez's seat will be highly coveted by his rivals.

In an interview with Sky Sports F1, Horner weighed in on the Perez situation at Red Bull, he said: "Checo is a very capable racer and being Max's team-mate is a very tough gig.

"I think he has shown real mental strength to be able to cope with that. The area he needs to focus on is Saturday; making sure that his average qualifying is a lot closer to Max.

"We need him starting further up the grid, particularly if the grid is going to converge. We can't afford to have a lot of cars between him and Max.

"2024 is a big year. A lot of drivers' contracts are coming to a close," the Red Bull boss pointed out. "We've got great talent in our own stable. Of course the car is very attractive for other drivers to want to be in."

With the Red Bull F1 machinery now the best on the grid, Horner hinted that there have been offers by drivers willing to drive for Red Bull for free, like Ayrton Senna did with Williams in 1993 before joining them in 1994 replacing Alain Prost.

He said: "There's been a little bit of that, but there's no guarantees of anything. Checo is our driver. If he does well, we'll want to keep him for 2025, but it's all about how he performs in relation to his team-mate."

Despite his tough season, Perez finished the 2023 F1 season runner up to Verstappen, Red Bull's first one/two in the Drivers' Championship in their history.