Formula 1: Red Bull adviser Dr Helmut Marko gives timeline for Liam Lawson v Sergio Perez decision

Dr Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s senior adviser, has given the deadline of Formula One‘s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to determine which of Sergio Perez or Liam Lawson will partner Max Verstappen in 2025.

With Formula One currently in Brazil for this weekend’s Grand Prix and sprint race, Kiwi Lawson and Mexican Perez have another opportunity to show their wares against one another.

Despite Red Bull’s senior team having a car that sees Verstappen top of the drivers championship, Perez trails his teammate by 216 points after Sunday morning’s sprint race – in the same car.

Lawson is only locked in at RB – the subsidiary team of Red Bull – to the end of the current Formula One season. However the Herald understands that contract is merely a means of pressure-testing the Kiwi to determine which team he’ll drive for in 2025.

Since his return to Formula One, Lawson has taken a ninth-placed finish at the US Grand Prix in Austin, before beating Perez in his home race in Mexico – albeit with the pair crossing the line in 16th and 17th respectively.

And while Lawson did manage to qualify eighth for Brazil’s sprint race on Saturday, Perez got his own back by finishing eighth to the Kiwi’s ninth and robbing him of the final point available.

Regardless, the two drivers should not be as close as they are on the track. Even with Perez’s struggles dropping his team from first to third behind McLaren and Ferrari in the constructors’ championship, Red Bull hold a 482-point advantage over their sister team.

But with tens of millions of dollars difference between finishing first and third, Red Bull have arguably left it too late in removing Perez from the top side to make any difference, with only four Grands Prix left in 2024.

Speaking to Sky Sport Italy, though, Marko outlined the decision over Perez’s future won’t come before the end of the season.

“Checo [Perez] has a contract for next year, but we are evaluating the whole situation,” the Austrian said. “After Abu Dhabi we will know all the facts and we will make our decision.

“Liam has made a really positive return, he is a tough driver in the race, sometimes even too much, as happened with Checo, but I think it was impressive.”

Marko has been a vocal advocate for Lawson all season, and earlier this year correctly declared the Kiwi would be in a Red Bull seat ahead of Daniel Ricciardo.

Red Bull are no strangers to sacking drivers. Lawson was only instilled this season after Marko and Christian Horner swung the axe on Ricciardo after the Singapore Grand Prix.

Elsewhere on the grid, the pair of Pierre Gasly (now with Alpine) and Alex Albon (now with Williams) were also terminated, despite their points differences being much smaller than Perez’s in comparison to Verstappen.

Perhaps as another sign of what’s to come for Perez, it is now widely speculated that Red Bull will move for current Williams driver Franco Colapinto.

Since replacing Logan Sargeant after the Dutch Grand Prix, Colapinto has scored five championship points, courtesy of an eighth-placed finish at Monza and 10th at Austin.

That success has seen Colapinto become hot property on the grid, given Williams will be unable to keep him in 2025, after committing to the driver pairing of Albon and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.

Liam Lawson and Sergio Perez went wheel-to-wheel at the Mexican Grand Prix. Photo / Getty Images

The Herald understands no driver outside of Red Bull’s own programme will be considered to partner Verstappen, meaning Colapinto would slot in at RB, with Lawson the likely candidate to move up.

Lawson’s current teammate, Yuki Tsunoda, is unlikely to be considered for the senior Red Bull drive, given he will likely leave the team in 2026, alongside major backer and engine suppliers Honda.

Should it come down to Lawson or Colapinto, though, Marko again insists any decision will come at the end of the season.

“Between Franco and Liam? We will make our assessments and decide after Abu Dhabi,” Marko continued.

“We have a contract with Lawson and we can put him in any team we want. Colapinto has a contract with Williams and must first of all be free from all obligations.”

Should Colapinto not move to RB, reserve driver Isack Hadjar would likely step up, having represented Red Bull through junior categories.

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is Formula One’s final fixture of 2024 and will be raced on December 9 (NZT).

Following the Grand Prix, Formula One will stay in the UAE to complete post-season testing, when Tsunoda and Hadjar will get behind the wheel of the Red Bull and RB respectively.

Alex Powell is an Online Sports Editor for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016, and previously worked for both Newshub and 1News.