27/08/2025
NEWS STORY
Confirmed as one of Cadillac's drivers for 2026, Sergio Perez insists that he has nothing to prove.
While the American outfit appears to have settled for two safe pairs of hands - Perez and Valtteri Bottas having proved faithful and willing number twos over the years - the fact is that the Mexican's final season with Red Bull was a disaster.
It started off well enough, but then gradually fell apart, and despite the warnings Perez was unable to raise his game. Though he had a contract for this season, he was promptly shown the door at the end of the year.
However, we have seen since that Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda have also struggled in the second Red Bull, suggesting that the Mexican was right all along and that it was the car and not just the driver.
Nonetheless, some see the Cadillac drive as a chance for Perez to redeem himself.
Not so, he insists.
"I feel like there's nothing to prove," he says. "Not just because of the current drivers or the next drivers that were in my seat but even before that.
"Everyone forgets about it," he continues, "but it's been a very tricky place to be in, to constantly be adapting, to build confidence mentally. It's a very unique challenge.
"I don't think I have anything to prove when you see the amount of points they've scored. It's like five points in the entire season. To me, it's more of a comeback to enjoy the sport, I want to enjoy the sport that I love, the sport that has given me so much. I couldn't afford to leave the way I left the sport, and this is why I'm coming back with this new project. I hope it's a very successful one. But more than anything, I want to enjoy this comeback.
"For me, it was very important to have this time off the sport," he says of his year on the sidelines, "especially because it only became clear towards the end of the year that I was not going to continue with Red Bull. So, instead of jumping into something just for staying on the grid, I needed that time to disconnect from the sport and to understand what I really want next in my career.
"It wasn't very clear for me in the beginning, especially the first couple of months, what I wanted to do next," he admits. "The more I was talking to the Cadillac team, the more it became apparent that this is what excites me to go back.
"It's just not going back to the grid with a regular team to fight for podiums and races and points," he adds. "This is a whole project. The dynamic, I feel, is different.
"I learned about myself as a driver. I've been in the spotlight for my entire career, not just in Formula 1, even from the karting days. You realise that once you step back and look at the sport as a fan, things that racing drivers worry about are totally irrelevant to the public aspect, even to the people that know the sport.
"My vision now, coming back to the sport, is to enjoy it and give the maximum every single time I'm in the car, working with the team, that's really what matters. All the rest are external factors."
However, the Mexican admits that he is under no illusions and admits that he and his team faces a mighty challenge.
"Sometimes if your car is competitive, you make it to the podium, but sometimes you've done a tremendous race and you finish P15. The driver that finishes P15, knowing that he has done the maximum together with the team and that they are progressing, that should be something to feel proud of, watching the sport from the outside."
Meanwhile, the team's CEO was keen to dismiss speculation that Perez might be joined by his former Red Bull boss at Cadillac.
"There have been no talks with Christian Horner," said Dan Towriss, "and there are no plans to do that. I'd like to officially shut down that rumour.
"Our support backing is 100% in Graeme Lowdon," he added.