Sergio Perez would not get a seat at Williams right now amid his Red Bull struggles, says former F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve.
The Mexican driver has endured a torrid few months, scoring just 15 points in his last six appearances, with team boss Christian Horner admitting that the 34-year-old’s form is currently “unsustainable.”
Amid speculation Perez – who only signed a new deal until the end of 2025 a month ago – could be dropped mid-season, the Mexican spun in Q1 and crashed out, leaving him 16th on the grid for Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
And 1997 world champion Villeneuve, who was highly critical of Daniel Ricciardo last month, insisted in a conversation about Williams’s driver choice for 2025 that Perez should not be on their list.
“Sergio Perez has shown he’s not able to win races much more, if not anymore,” Villeneuve said, before this weekend’s action.
“Williams need a special driver to take the team to the next level and I don’t think Perez is that.”
Carlos Sainz has been linked with the second seat at Williams next year. Team boss James Vowles has already made it known that Sainz is his number one target to partner Alex Albon, with Logan Sargeant expected to be dropped.
“I would do everything in my power to sign Carlos Sainz, give him a mountain of money for five years so there’s a long-term project to get back to winning ways at Williams,” Villeneuve added.
“If the team is willing to invest that money then Sainz will be confident in the team’s vision and plan.”
Meanwhile as for Perez, he has now been eliminated in Q1 in four out of the last six grands prix qualifying sessions.
The RB trio of Ricciardo, Yuki Tsunoda and reserve driver Liam Lawson have all been linked with replacing Perez.
Perez said after his crash on Saturday: “I’m really disappointed. It hurts to let your whole team down but at the end of the day I’m determined more than ever to get back to where we belong as a team.
“It’s a massive job tomorrow, a long race ahead of us. I have to shut the external noise down and focus on the job. We need something to change quickly.”
Lando Norris secured pole position in a McLaren one-two, with Perez’s team-mate Max Verstappen third on the grid.
