By signing a fresh 2-year contract extension with Red Bull, Sergio Perez has shut down his critics vying for a worthier driver to race alongside Max Verstappen. This announcement surprisingly came right after the 34-year-old’s consecutive failures in Imola and Monaco. He only scored 4 points in the last two races, with Monaco accounting for a crash-induced DNF. But with the contract renewal forcing life into him, Perez wants a ‘simple’ yet powerful performance in Canada.

The 2023 Canadian GP was a struggle for the Guadalajara-born racer. He got knocked out in Q2 on Saturday but put up a tough fight to finish P6 from P12. Then, the RB19’s sheer prowess assisted his run, but the RB20 isn’t the same on bumpy circuits. As seen in Monaco, Perez embarrassingly bowed out in Q3 with a P18, only to DNF in Lap 1 of the race.

“While the race was a disaster in Monaco, we were in the wrong grid position due to a poor qualifying and we need to solve that in Montreal,” Perez said ahead of the Canadian GP. “The team and I want to be starting at the front of the grid come race day and the aim is to make our lives a lot simpler this weekend.”

The contract renewal push is bound to nudge Perez toward getting closer with Max Verstappen. His long-time sponsor, who owns Telcel and Telemex, has also promised fans a new era.

Sergio Perez’s sponsor declares “great races” are coming

Red Bull no longer has an unattainable lead in 2024. Frederic Vasseur and Andrea Stella have done radical work with Ferrari and McLaren over the last year and during the winter break. With the constructors’ championship now witnessing a tough battle, can Sergio Perez keep the scales in Red Bull’s favor? His sponsor, Carlos Slim Domit, is optimistic.

“When the car is competitive, Checo has always shown he is ready,” Slim Domit said, as quoted by GPblog, adding, “This year, outside the last few races, he is a lot closer to the times [of Verstappen] from the first practice sessions. Before, it took him longer to get into the rhythm as he adjusted to the car’s set-up, which is better for Max’s style.”

The Mexican business tycoon concluded, saying, “I think great races are coming up for him, although we are also seeing progress from other teams this year, such as Ferrari and McLaren.” The Red Bull driver sits P5 in the drivers’ standings with 107 points, only 1 short of Carlos Sainz in P4. Though his RB20 would give him an opportunity to leave Sainz in the dust, the terminal damage from the Monaco GP could be the game-changer.

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