To replace Max Verstappen as his teammate, Red Bull is considering four drivers.

After winning consecutive World Championships for Red Bull, Max Verstappen has solidified his position as the team’s star.
Comparatively speaking, his teammate still has trouble.

The 2023 season of Sergio Perez has been extremely emotional. The Mexican driver entered the title race by winning two of the first four races, but he has since gone winless, falling 151 points behind his world champion teammate.

Despite Checo’s unimpressive performances, the 33-year-old is expected to at least finish out his contract with Red Bull because none of the team’s alternative options are prepared to replace him in 2024.

Red Bull has four candidates to choose from for the second seat, each of which has advantages and disadvantages and is worth considering given that Perez is probably out of the running for 2025 and beyond. These four are the most likely candidates to run for Checo’s seat.

From the neutral’s point of view, Lando Norris is the most appealing choice. The McLaren driver has established himself as one of the most talented in the league after appearing on the podium three times already this season.
In addition to challenging Verstappen, he would be capable of winning races.
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Unfortunately for Red Bull, the Bristol-born driver is under contract with McLaren through the end of the 2025 season, and Zak Brown will be very hesitant to part ways with his face of the company without a sizable reward. The desire of the defending champions for a driver who can regularly dethrone Verstappen is the second question surrounding Norris.
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Daniel Rencart.

Extreme highs and lows have marked Daniel Ricciardo’s 2023 season. The well-liked Australian driver began the season as a test and reserve, made an impressive comeback to replace Nyck de Vries in Hungary, and then broke a bone in his hand at Zandvoort, keeping him out of the race for four and counting.
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AlphaTauri’s controversial decision to keep Ricciardo over rookie Liam Lawson shows that Red Bull is confident the 34-year-old can regain his form.
He becomes a compelling alternative to Checo for Christian Horner and company when his close personal relationship with Verstappen and knowledge of Milton Keynes’ inner workings are taken into account.

Yki Tsunoda.

Another choice for Horner to think about is Yuki Tsunoda, especially if the team wants to go back to their tradition of promoting Red Bull Driver Academy graduates to the senior team.
In his third season in the sport, the young Japanese driver has been a team leader for AlphaTauri.
It took him some time to establish consistency in F1, but he has done so.

Prior to his home race in Japan, the 23-year-old signed a one-year contract extension.
However, with his primary sponsor Honda leaving to join the Aston Martin project for 2026 and beyond, it will soon become clear how much confidence Red Bull truly has in Tsunoda’s development going forward.

Alexander Albon.

A surprise reunion with Alex Albon would be the Red Bull curveball choice. The Thai-British driver was Verstappen’s teammate for 18 months before being replaced by Checo, but since then, he has undergone nothing short of a sensational development.
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The 27-year-old has eliminated teammate Logan Sargeant at all 16 rounds so far in 2023, earning all of Williams’ points.
Albon’s return to Milton Keynes has garnered some interest from Helmut Marko as well, but any move to Red Bull would be contingent on Williams continuing their current upward development trajectory.