Red Bull’s 2024 Formula 1 season ended with a bittersweet taste. Max Verstappen crushed the competition en route to his fourth consecutive Drivers’ Championship, but Red Bull lost the Constructors’ title to McLaren—a shocking collapse after their once-dominant lead.
The biggest culprit? Sergio Perez’s brutal second-half slump.
With just 21 points in the last 10 races, Perez’s freefall from title contender to liability cost Red Bull dearly. The damage was so severe that Liam Lawson will replace him in 2025.
But could Red Bull have saved its season by axing Perez sooner? Team principal Christian Horner isn’t convinced.
Horner: “Impossible to Know” If Perez’s Mid-Season Exit Would Have Changed Everything
After Red Bull’s Constructors’ Championship streak ended, the finger-pointing began. Many argued that if Red Bull had pulled the trigger earlier and replaced Perez mid-season, they could have salvaged the title fight.
Horner, however, pushed back on that theory.
“It’s always easy to look with hindsight, and it’s impossible to know what anybody else would have done in that car.”
“Sergio started the season so well – second in Bahrain, second in Jeddah, and tremendously fast in Japan, which is an ultimate driver’s circuit.”
Perez wasn’t always struggling. In the opening rounds, he was a legitimate title threat, even giving Verstappen a headache in the early races.
But after Monaco, everything unraveled.
“From Monte Carlo on, the wheels came off his campaign and, from that point onwards, we just haemorrhaged too many points.”
Perez’s Collapse: A 285-Point Disaster
The numbers paint a brutal picture of Perez’s second-half struggles:
- 285 points behind Verstappen by season’s end—the largest teammate gap on the grid.
- Only 21 points in the final 10 rounds—a catastrophic drop in form.
- Third place in the Constructors’ Championship—Red Bull went from 42 points ahead of McLaren to finishing behind both McLaren and Ferrari.
Even Horner admits that Perez’s slump was a major factor in Red Bull’s shocking decline.
“That was something that we tried to understand, and we were working very hard with Sergio to try and assist some of the issues he had.”
“But it was very expensive in terms of points lost in the Constructors’ Championship.”
Why Didn’t Red Bull Pull the Plug on Perez Mid-Season?
Behind closed doors, Red Bull’s top brass considered making a change over the summer break. Daniel Ricciardo was rumored as a potential replacement, but the team ultimately stuck with Perez, hoping he could rediscover his early-season form.
Horner now admits the gamble backfired.
“We really wanted to try and help turn his year around.”
“We won more races than any other team this year by a significant margin and had as many pole positions as McLaren. But third in the Constructors’ Championship—when you look at the deficit from the second car—obviously, it’s just been too broad, especially from that point in the year.”
Yet despite the damage, Red Bull chose loyalty over a ruthless mid-season cut.
Loyalty Over Logic? Perez’s History Saved Him—Until It Didn’t
Horner made it clear—Perez’s past contributions played a role in Red Bull giving him extra chances.
“Look at what Sergio has done for us over the last four years.”
- Played a key role in Verstappen’s 2021 title fight.
- Finished second in the 2023 Drivers’ Championship.
- Won five races for Red Bull.
- Helped Red Bull dominate the 2022 and 2023 Constructors’ Championships.
“So there was a loyalty to try and really help Checo. But, unfortunately, it didn’t materialize.”
The Harsh Reality: Did Red Bull Make a Mistake?
F1 is a cutthroat business. Red Bull has never hesitated to make bold driver decisions—Axing Pierre Gasly for Alex Albon in 2019, then ditching Albon for Perez in 2021.
This time, they waited too long.
With McLaren and Ferrari surging in the second half of 2024, Red Bull needed a second driver delivering big points. Perez didn’t deliver—and it cost them the championship.
By the time Red Bull finally pulled the trigger on his departure, it was too late.
Looking Ahead: Is Liam Lawson the Answer?
For 2025, Red Bull is making the change they hesitated on last season. Liam Lawson, who impressed in his AlphaTauri cameo in 2023, will step in alongside Verstappen.
Will it be enough to reclaim the Constructors’ Championship, or has McLaren’s resurgence made them the new power team in F1?
One thing is clear—Red Bull won’t make the same mistake twice.
