Former Alpine team boss Otmar Szafnauer understands Cadillac’s interest in Sergio Pérez. The ex-Red Bull driver is increasingly being linked with the second seat of the American team, after he had to give up his spot at the Austrians to Liam Lawson at the end of 2024. According to Szafnauer, who previously worked with the Mexican at Force India and Racing Point, Pérez still has a lot to offer Formula 1.
While Valtteri Bottas no longer needs to wait in suspense, the decision is not yet final for his potential teammate Sergio Pérez. The Mexican last competed in Formula 1 as a teammate of Max Verstappen at Red Bull, where he consistently came up short. However, the ongoing struggles of successors Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda with the Red Bull vehicle have cast Pérez’s problems in a new light.
The Mexican’s experience, including as a driver for a team with multiple world titles to their name, reportedly makes him a sought-after candidate for Cadillac. And rightly so, says former team boss Otmar Szafnauer. “If (Pérez) finds the right environment, with all his experience at both smaller teams with a smaller budget and at Red Bull, he provides good feedback. So, he definitely has something to offer,” the former Alpine team boss tells PlanetF1. “Especially for a new team that needs an experienced driver in the first few years, Checo would be a good addition.”
‘Knew what Pérez was capable of’
In his last five races as a Formula 1 driver, Pérez only made it into the top ten once, during the GP Las Vegas 2024. However, according to Szafnauer, this is not a good indication of the Mexican’s talent. “When I worked with Checo, I remember him telling me: ‘I’m going to beat Nico Hülkenberg.’ I thought it would be great if you could really achieve that, because Hülkenberg was a great driver then, and still is, and very fast over one round. It took Sergio some time, but eventually he beat Hülkenberg.”
In 2015, in his second year as Hülkenberg’s teammate at Force India, Pérez finished ninth in the drivers’ championship, while the German ended up in tenth place. “It was very exciting. That really impressed me and he did that through his own hard work, focus, and mental resilience at that time,” Szafnauer continues. “So I knew he was capable of that. I was a bit surprised that he didn’t achieve those kinds of results at Red Bull.”
