Sergio Perez's father breaks his silence on the racing future of the former Red Bull driver

Sergio Perez's father feels his son can emulate the kind of return to F1 that former champions like Fernando Alonso, Niki Lauda, and Kimi Raikkonen were able to do. The Mexican was part of the Red Bull driver lineup from 2021 to 2024 and was dropped from the team at the end of last season.

During his stint with Red Bull, Perez had a relatively successful run. He got his first win with the team in 2021 at Baku. In 2022, he finished the season third in the championship and then jumped to second in 2023. However, the problem throughout his stint was the gap between him and Max Verstappen.

The Dutch driver almost always had a decent performance gulf over his teammate, showing in the final results. It all came to a head in 2024 when Red Bull's performance dropped off and it was caught up by rivals McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes. While Verstappen could clinch the title, Perez's performance suffered. As a result, he finished a distant eighth in the championship and cost Red Bull the title.

This led to the Mexican being ultimately replaced by Liam Lawson for the 2025 F1 season. As quoted by Racingnews365, Sergio Perez's father feels the Mexican can emulate the kind of return former F1 legends like Raikkonen, Alonso, and Lauda had.

“As he said, he will wait these six months. If a good opportunity comes, he will take it. Look at how many Formula 1 drivers have taken a sabbatical and how they come back. [Niki] Lauda did it, Kimi Raikkonen did it, Fernando Alonso did it. Many drivers have done it and they come back stronger than ever. I have no doubt that a good opportunity will come for Checo to come back for several more years. He deserves to say goodbye like the greats,” Sergio Perez's father said.

Perez, on his part, was not entirely sure of what the future holds for him.

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Sergio Perez on his future

Sergio Perez has been a part of the sport for a long time, and this would be his first season away. As quoted by F1.com, the driver acknowledged that he didn't expect such a situation to come up and would wait around six months to finally take a call on what he wanted to do.

“Honestly, I don’t know. It’s too soon to have an answer. Everything happened very quickly at the end of the season, so I didn’t expect it. Now I’m in an incredible, dreamy position, which I didn’t even realise I was in, so if you ask me now, I don’t know. I’m very happy with my life, very excited about what’s ahead," Sergio Perez said.

“For sure, if I receive a good, interesting project, then I’ll definitely consider it and think about it. It will all come in its own time. For now, my priority in the months ahead is to have fun, do what I haven’t been able to, travel, be with my family. In the next six months I’ll make a decision on what I want for the next step of my career.”

With Perez's kind of experience, it wouldn't be a surprise if the Mexican ended up at Cadillac in 2026. The Mexican could be an asset for several teams on the grid, and it might come down to whether Perez wants to continue with the grind of Formula 1.