Last week, Red Bull Racing announced that Sergio Perez would be replacing Alex Albon as Max Verstappen’s team-mate next season.
However, details were scarce – and it wasn’t immediately clear how long Perez had signed on for.
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Dr Helmut Marko, a senior Red Bull advisor, has since revealed that the team agreed a one-year deal with the highly rated Mexican, though they have an option to extend his contract beyond 2021.
“It was a relatively short contract negotiation. It’s a one-year contract, but we have an option, we can step in if he gets other offers,” Dr Marko said.
“The reason for it is where you have to bring Max in. Since he’s been with us, the second car, except with Ricciardo, has always dropped off. Now we are looking at how a driver who was very fast in a Mercedes copy will perform.
“Perez has incredible tyre management [skills] and he brings a lot of know-how about how the Mercedes engine works, the drivability.
“After they [Racing Point] terminated the contract with him, he was naturally very attentive to everything Mercedes does, so we are hoping for a lot of input,” Dr Marko added.
Earlier, Max Verstappen said he believes that Sergio Perez will help Red Bull take the fight to Mercedes next season and admitted that him being outnumbered by the Silver Arrows in recent seasons has led to missed opportunities.
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