Former F1 driver backs Perez: 'He has what every driver wants'

Red Bull are certainly not short of choice for Verstappen's teammate at the moment. Perez still has a contract for 2024. Daniel Ricciardo is on standby as the third driver. In sister team AlphaTauri, Yuki Tsunoda and Nyck de Vries are ready. And beyond that, Red Bull have as many as 11 drivers in their junior programme across five different competitions.

Despite the many candidates, De la Rosa expects the team to remain unchanged next season. "I really think Checo will stay at Red Bull, or should stay, because he’s been getting stronger and stronger, race by race, since he joined Red Bull. And he’s proved that it’s not easy to adapt to a big team, to a car, especially with this new Formula 1. There are very few drivers that you throw them into a new car, a new team, and they just will perform, they will adapt themselves to the car. Most of the drivers need the cars to adapt to themselves. And I think Checo is an example, he has now managed to adapt the car to his driving style. I think Checo is performing well, I don’t think Red Bull is considering replacing him."

'Perez has what we all want'

"Checo has proven to be a very consistent guy," De la Rosa continued his analysis. "He's always very hungry because he has been in uncompetitive teams for most of his career. One very important thing is: if you start your career in Formula 1 in a winning team, it’s easy to lose interest or motivation towards the end. But when you have been on the tough end, you appreciate what you have. What Checo has right now is hugely interesting. He can wake up every Sunday morning thinking ‘If I have a good day today, I can win this one’. This is something we’ve been fighting all our lives for, to be in that position."