The crazy thing about Sergio Pérez’s unexpected but well-deserved victory in Sunday’s Sakhir Grand Prix is that the Mexican is currently out of a job for the 2021 Formula 1 season!
The thirty-year-old has already been confirmed to leave the BWT Racing Point Formula One Team at the end of the current campaign, with joining in his place when Sebastian Vettel they become the factory Aston Martin Racing outfit.
Pérez has been linked to the second seat at Aston Martin Red Bull Racing for next season in place of Alexander Albon, but should that not materialised, he is likely to be watching from the outside, although he says he has options to return to Formula 1 for 2022 should he not be on the grid in 2021.
However, he says that should he not be on the grid, such as what happened with his former team-mates Esteban Ocon (in 2019) and Nico Hülkenberg (this year), it proves once more that the best drivers are not necessarily in Formula 1.
“I already have some good options for 2022 so my best option is obviously to keep going on next year,” Pérez is quoted as saying by Motorsport.com after his shock win at the Bahrain International Circuit. “But if I have to stop, then it’s not a disaster, I can come back in 2022.
“The regulations are going to change so much that, in a way, I don’t think it will hurt that much the driving side, to get up to speed. I’m at peace with myself, you know. I think Esteban [Ocon] mentioned that drivers like him missing out on seats, it’s just the way Formula 1 is.
“It can be really tough and not the best drivers are in Formula 1 unfortunately. So we keep pushing and we keep delivering and I think that’s the best way to do it.”
