Max Verstappen camp wants Sergio Perez out of Red Bull, claims F1 pundit: "I hear these rumours everywhere”

The Max Verstappen camp wants Sergio Perez out of Red Bull and a new teammate in his place. That is the view of former F1 racer Ralf Schumacher. The former Williams driver revealed that it is starting to become clear that Verstappen's side wants a new teammate.

He's heard far too many rumors about the same and feels Perez is already aware of it. According to Ralf, one of the reasons why Perez is being more selfish is because he knows this might be one of the last opportunities for him to win races and challenge for the title. Talking to Speedcafe, Ralf said:

“It’s difficult, and from my point of view, it’s clear that the Verstappen’s side wants a new teammate. I hear these rumours everywhere. I see it as a problem that Perez knows – his time at Red Bull Racing will expire. He’s fighting for his chance to play up front, to win, to have a say in the title.

"It is like this, the teammate is always the biggest competitor. And who knows what possibilities there will be later. You can see from Lewis Hamilton how fast it goes."

He added:

“That’s why Sergio is now becoming more selfish and as far as selfishness goes, Max Verstappen can’t complain. Max does it very well. He’s rightly number one on the team, but he also clearly defines his territory. Being his teammate is certainly not easy – I certainly wouldn’t have wanted to be.”

Troubled relationship between Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez would make Mexican's departure sensible

Verstappen and Perez are doing well with Red Bull

Ralf Schumacher added that if the troubled nature of the relationship between Verstappen and Perez continues, it would make sense for Red Bull to look for a replacement.

“If there is a troubled relationship between Verstappen and Perez, then it would make sense to part ways with the Mexican. If you look closely, you can see that the teammates don’t get along well. And if a team has two drivers who don’t harmonise with each other, then that’s a big disadvantage for the team in the end.”

On the face of it, the relationship between Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez has not appeared fractious so far.

There have been a few issues like Verstappen ignoring team orders in Brazil last season, but overall things have been straightforward between the two. Unless we see a drastic change in the way the two drivers battle for the title, it does seem hard to believe that Red Bull will be trying to replace Sergio Perez.