The Sergio Perez clause that could re-open Red Bull door for Daniel Ricciardo

Sam Cooper 21 Jul 2023 1:50 PM

Sergio Perez and Daniel Ricciardo. Budapest, Hungary July 2023.

A report has suggested that Sergio Perez may have a contract clause that would allow him to switch from Red Bull to AlphaTauri.

Often when a driver joins either of the two Red Bull outfits, their contract will be with parent company Red Bull GmbH which Red Bull bosses have utilised to their benefit in the past.

While the likes of Mercedes may have close links with Williams and Ferrari to Haas due to being their engine supplier, Red Bull’s relationship is unique.

How do Red Bull and AlphaTauri contracts work?

The goal of Red Bull’s sister team since it was formed in 2006 has been to blood young drivers ahead of a potential career in the Red Bull seat.

It has proved an effective tool with the likes of Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo, Max Verstappen and even Carlos Sainz starting out in the Toro Rosso seat before moving on to bigger and better things.

But while drivers will be hoping that route between teams is only one way, there have been occasions where some have gone in reverse.

Daniil Kvyat was one of the first to make the journey, starting with Toro Rosso before moving up to Red Bull and then back to Toro Rosso.

Pierre Gasly too returned to what had become AlphaTauri after a brief stint in the Red Bull seat.

But while this situation happened to Gasly and Kvyat, there is something different about the situation with Perez.

The unusual signing of Sergio Perez

Having burned through young talents Gasly and Alex Albon, Red Bull made an unusual signing in 2021 by opting to go out of their own pool of drivers and hire Perez who had just been replaced by Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin.

It proved a wise choice with Perez providing the experience needed to if not match Verstappen then be an adequate partner.

The two worked together to get Verstappen his 2021 title and combined again for Red Bull’s Constructors’ crown in 2022.

But now as Perez’s form plummets, there is an increased focus on his future, a situation that was not helped with the arrival of Daniel Ricciardo back into the AlphaTauri seat.

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Does Sergio Perez have an AlphaTauri clause in his Red Bull contract?

As with any contract, the finer details are usually kept hidden from the general public and as such, no one is sure what Perez’s deal says.

But The Race have reported that there is speculation that Perez, like Gasly and Kvyat before him, does have a clause that would allow him to switch to AlphaTauri should Red Bull want to pull that particular lever.

Should that be true, then Perez would be under huge pressure to up his performance especially if Ricciardo does anything of note at AlphaTauri.

Of course, Red Bull are not afraid to take a financial hit if they think it will bring a sporting benefit so even if Perez did not have such a clause, do not rule out Red Bull paying him off as they did with Nyck de Vries should they decide to make a change.