"It's nonsense to think that far away”: Sergio Perez rubbishes Daniel Ricciardo replacement rumors

Sergio Perez has pushed aside the rumors of him being replaced by Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull in 2025.

As the F1 season heats up, rumors and speculations about driver line-ups for the coming years have started circulating. One such rumor involves Daniel Ricciardo's return to Red Bull, potentially replacing Sergio Perez in 2025.

However, the Mexican driver recently dismissed these speculations, and emphasized that he is solely focused on his current performance.

The rumors gained traction when it was confirmed that Daniel Ricciardo would make his full-time comeback to F1 with AlphaTauri, replacing Nyck de Vries for the remainder of the year.

Following this announcement, Ricciardo expressed his intention to target a return to the Red Bull seat, the team he left at the conclusion of the 2018 season.

With Red Bull's star driver, Max Verstappen, recently committing to the team until 2028, the spotlight shifted to Sergio Perez, who currently holds a contract with Red Bull until the end of next year. As Ricciardo aims to reclaim a spot at the top-tier team, Perez is potentially in the crosshairs for the 2025 season.

However, in the press conference ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, Sergio Perez shrugged off the rumors while speaking to the media, including Sportskeeda, asserting that he does not dwell on events too far in the future. With over 13 years of experience in Formula 1, Perez is taking a pragmatic approach, focusing on the present rather than worrying about what might happen in 2025.

"No, I’m not a guy… I’ve been in F1 for 13 years so I’m not a guy who thinks so much further ahead," Perez said. "I’ve been with the engineers, I don’t even have the time to discuss what’s going on with Daniel. I think it’s a great opportunity for him, and that’s it."

The 33-year-old driver is determined to deliver strong performances in the upcoming races, and remains optimistic about his future with Red Bull.

"I’m focusing on Hungary and then Belgium and not really thinking about 2025, you know? It’s such a far world ahead, it’s nonsense to think that far away," Perez added.

As the season unfolds, fans and pundits alike will be keen to see how the driver line-ups evolve for the 2025 season.

"When you look at those bad qualifyings, there’s always been a different situation, external situation" - Sergio Perez addresses his qualifying woes

As the F1 season progresses, Sergio Perez finds himself facing a challenging phase marked by a slump in his qualifying performances. Recent rumors surrounding the potential replacement of Perez by Daniel Ricciardo have further intensified the pressure on the Mexican.

However, the Red Bull driver remains steadfast, asserting that he is not worried about his struggles in qualifying and believes that external factors, rather than pure lack of speed, have contributed to his recent disappointing results.

Perez's struggles in qualifying have been evident since his remarkable pole position in Miami at the end of May. Over the past five rounds, he has failed to progress to Q3, the final session of qualifying, and has only managed to secure a solitary podium finish during that period.

Despite this worrisome trend, Sergio Perez maintains that there have been underlying factors at play that have affected his performance.

The 33-year-old driver explained that his issues in qualifying have often arisen when weather conditions have been uncertain, particularly in the presence of rain.

While he acknowledged the deficit in his recent performances, Sergio Perez revealed that he and his team have been diligently working together during the break between races to address the problems. Speaking to the media, including Sportskeeda, he said:

“When you look at those bad qualifyings, there’s always been a different situation, external situation, that we haven’t dealt as good as we should have dealt with them. It hasn’t been pure pace, put it that way."

“We’ve been doing some good work with the engineers over the week," he continued. "We have some ideas for here, and hopefully we are able to just feel just in general have a better platform where we can be more comfortable, and if there is a change in conditions, then we don’t have such a difference.”

With the upcoming race weekend in Hungary, Perez's determination to rectify his recent qualifying troubles faces an additional challenge in the form of the trial running of the Alternative Tyre Allocation system. This new rule will require all 20 participants to use the Hard tyre in Q1, the medium compound for the 15 drivers in Q2, and the grippiest Soft rubber for those in Q3.

Nonetheless, Sergio Perez remains unfazed by these changes, expressing confidence in his ability to deliver under any circumstances. The Mexican believes in the support of his team and has proven in the past that he can rise to the occasion when needed.

“We work in F1. We must deliver at all times, in all circumstances," Perez asserted. "I’ve proven before we can do it. I think I have full support from the team. It’s just time, I think.”

At the Hungarian Grand Prix, all eyes will be on Sergio Perez as he looks to reclaim his qualifying form and silence the rumors about his future at Red Bull.