Sergio Perez is currently in his 4th consecutive season with Red Bull Racing. That is something many haven’t been able to achieve in the recent past since Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull days (not counting Max Verstappen for obvious reasons). Led by figures like Helmut Marko and Christian Horner, the Milton Keynes squad is known for swiftly swapping out drivers who fail to meet expectations. Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon are a couple of drivers who have faced ruthless swapping firsthand. Now, it’s no secret that they were no match for Verstappen, and the same is true for Checo as well. The only difference is that Red Bul was not a championship-winning team when Gasly and Albon got their shot.

Pierre Gasly was promoted to the senior team for 2019 after Ricciardo decided to step away from it. However, unlike Ricciardo who was neck and neck with Max in 2018, Gasly struggled to match the pace of the Dutchman and was demoted back to Toro Rosso (now Visa Cash App RB) mid-season in 2019 and replaced by Alex Albon. While Albon was impressive in the initial few races, he too couldn’t match the pace of Verstappen and met a similar fate at the end of the 2020 season when Red Bull declared he would be replaced by Sergio Perez.

However, 2021 was the year when Red Bull finally turned up with a car capable of winning the championship and Max Verstappen delivered the trophy right away. Since then, the Dutchman has continued to dominate while Perez struggles to keep up with him. So I guess the only question that matters is whether Gasly and Albon would still struggle as much as Checo is struggling against Verstappen. Well, according to a recent conversation on the Missed Apex Formula 1 Podcast about the 2025 grid, those two would be much closer to Max than Perez currently is, and the Mexican needs to be replaced by a better driver.

Speaking about the comparison, F1 pundit and podcast guest Bradley Philpot said, “I think Perez is, I know you said he’s done better than Gasly and Albon at Red Bull. [But] I think, he’s had a much fairer crack at it. Most of the time he’s had a car which is way easier to drive, better, he can afford to be further away from Max and still get front-running finishes. I think if you slot in a Gasly or an Albon into that seat now, I think they would be closer to Max than Perez is, that’s just how I feel… I think Perez is on my doesn’t deserve to be on the grid based on us putting together the top 20 in the world.”

It was finally in season 6 of the Formula 1 documentary series, Drive To Survive, that Gasly and Albon both spoke about Red Bull’s ruthless environment.

No seat is ever safe at Red Bull according to Pierre Galsy and Alex Albon

In 2023, Nyck de Vries suffered the same fate as the two Red Bull drivers. After only a handful of races in the season, Red Bull decided that De Vries was not a good fit for the team and despite his rookie status, the team swapped him with the Honey Badger, who was sacked by McLaren in just the previous season. Both Gasly and Albon took a moment to reflect on De Vries’ departure and shed light on the intense environment within the team.

Pierre Gasly said, “Red Bull doesn’t have time. They got no patience, they got no mercy. And good or bad, that’s just the way it works there.” Albon echoed the statement and added, “At Red Bull, your seat is never safe. There are so many drivers in that program. So as soon as you don’t perform, there’s a replacement for you. And that’s where the pressure comes from.”

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Sergio Perez Nearly Exposed Red Bull’s Fatal Mistake in Australia: “A Step Behind Ferrari and McLaren”

Do you think Sergio Perez can save his seat and secure a contract extension with Red Bull Racing beyond 2024? Share your insights in the comments down below.