{"id":33294,"date":"2025-05-01T13:03:56","date_gmt":"2025-05-01T17:03:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=33294"},"modified":"2025-05-01T13:11:16","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T17:11:16","slug":"sergio-perez-in-talks-with-several-teams-for-2026-comeback","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/05\/01\/sergio-perez-in-talks-with-several-teams-for-2026-comeback\/","title":{"rendered":"Sergio Perez in talks with several teams for 2026 comeback"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/05\/01\/perez-zhou-and-bottas-in-the-race-for-cadillac-seat\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Sergio Perez<\/a> exited F1 after arguably his most difficult year in the sport, at least from a performance perspective. Both from outside and within Red Bull, it became clear that Perez could not get to grips with the RB21.<\/p>\n<p>Still, the 35-year-old insisted that he could return to F1 if the right project became available.<\/p>\n<p>As it stands, multiple teams are understood to be in negotiations with Perez ahead of 2026.<\/p>\n<h2>Sergio Perez not only in contract talks with Cadillac<\/h2>\n<p>LWOS has reported extensively on the drivers in contention to join <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/03\/11\/cadillac-reveal-contenders-for-2026-f1-line-up\/\" target=\"_self\">Cadillac<\/a>, with Sergio Perez being a leading contender for some time.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, various outlets are discussing Perez&#8217;s chances of joining Cadillac with growing certainty.<\/p>\n<p>There is no denying that he ticks several of the attributes the American outfit are looking for.<\/p>\n<p>His experience, sponsorship and proven track record with midfield teams would make him a logical choice for a new team.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"Fn7NPYuaRhJMLW2OSTn9CA\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2188667378\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'Fn7NPYuaRhJMLW2OSTn9CA',sig:'C_F3pcgi2VnCKFHim4ENIyNLZ-KspbGH4rXXUg5vIoc=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2188667378',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Of course, there are others under consideration to join the US project.<\/p>\n<p>Valtteri Bottas, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/02\/24\/zhou-guanyu-optimistic-of-returning-to-f1-in-2026\/\" target=\"_self\">Zhou Guanyu<\/a>, and even the likes of former Mercedes reserve driver Frederik Vesti have been linked with Cadillac.<\/p>\n<p>Of these names, Perez is understood to be in a relatively strong position as contract negotiations unfold.<\/p>\n<p>However, nothing is set in stone, and talks are expected to continue for the foreseeable future with many drivers.<\/p>\n<p>Cadillac have the luxury of being able to wait for the driver market to evolve and capitalise on any mid-season announcements and changes.<\/p>\n<p>Reaching an agreement this early in the season, whilst a possibility, would be a waste of their flexible position.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"-pfnVsoFSBdUXK7m_uQL9g\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2172075961\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'-pfnVsoFSBdUXK7m_uQL9g',sig:'m7DrB2ckapwoh_9nNycPtAfUTzgbxvb7ESnIonNgEtM=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2172075961',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Graeme Lowdon, Cadillac&#8217;s team principal, has spoken candidly about the multitude of options at his disposal.<\/p>\n<p>This means there is no immediate rush to make an agreement.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, the drivers Cadillac are negotiating with will also explore other options.<\/p>\n<p>This might force Cadillac to move quickly if they want to secure a priority target &#8211; and Sergio Perez could fall under this category.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to Cadillac, the 35-year-old, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motorsport.com\/f1\/news\/would-sergio-perez-be-the-right-choice-for-cadillac-f1-in-2026\/10718453\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">reportedly in talks with multiple outfits<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h4>Surprises yet to come in the market<\/h4>\n<p>On paper, this year&#8217;s &#8220;silly season&#8221; was supposed to be more quiet than last year&#8217;s.<\/p>\n<p>Most drivers have multi-year deals, keeping their positions &#8211; at least theoretically &#8211; secure until the end of 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, this is the reason why Cadillac is seen as the most realistic option for those who lose their seats last year.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"KzBlAY8mSCtcnNE-b7YtAA\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2210574105\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'KzBlAY8mSCtcnNE-b7YtAA',sig:'GQOh5mBK8ybnLCoBBuXEWLaGAGjTJcxy_AqS9MV__Yg=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2210574105',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p>With that said, the first few months of the season have shown how quickly things can change.<\/p>\n<p>From Red Bull&#8217;s promotion of <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/04\/26\/red-bull-pleased-with-yuki-tsunoda-initial-performance\/\" target=\"_self\">Yuki Tsunoda<\/a> to Alpine&#8217;s unusual predicament with Jack Doohan and Franco Colapinto, there has already been much to discuss.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking of Alpine, they are a team whose activities are worth staying updated with.<\/p>\n<p>Under <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/02\/20\/colapinto-one-of-most-important-alpine-assets-briatore\/\" target=\"_self\">Flavio Briatore&#8217;s leadership<\/a>, the Enstone team are more than willing to pull the trigger and make a bold signing.<\/p>\n<p>Replacing Ocon with Doohan before Abu Dhabi, only to sign Colapinto on a multi-year deal in January, are recent evidence of Alpine&#8217;s unorthodox approach.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, this is not to say that Perez is negotiating with the French team.<\/p>\n<p>For now, it is unknown which outfits the former Red Bull driver is considering beyond Cadillac.<\/p>\n<p>Still, considering Perez&#8217;s combination of experience and sponsorship, it is hardly a surprise he is on the radar of several teams.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sergio Perez exited F1 after arguably his most difficult year in the sport, at least from a performance perspective. Both from outside and within Red Bull, it became clear that Perez could not get to grips with the RB21. Still, the 35-year-old insisted that he could return to F1 if the right project became available. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4927,"featured_media":33295,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[2452,2348,2455,78],"class_list":["post-33294","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula-1","category-news","tag-f1-2025-season","tag-perez","tag-rb21","tag-red-bull-racing"],"modified_by":"Jaden Diaz-Ndisang","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33294","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4927"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33294"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33294\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33301,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33294\/revisions\/33301"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33295"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33294"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33294"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33294"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}