Perez hands Red Bull defiant message after season-ending shunt

Sergio Perez is adamant he will not give up his Red Bull seat for next season after retiring from the year-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The 34-year-old pulled up on the second lap at the Yas Marina Circuit in what has been mooted as his final race for the Milton Keynes squad.

Speaking to media including RacingNews365 after his retirement for the race, the six-time grand prix winner struck a defiant tone, reiterating that he holds a contract for 2025 and beyond.

"Well, at the moment, I don't know," he said when asked about the situation for next year. "I just know that I've got a contract to race next year, and unless something changes in the coming days, that's going to be the situation for next year.

When it was then queried with him as to why the Red Bull bosses were holding talks with other drivers, he replied: "That's something you need to ask them."

When RacingNews365 confirmed that it had and that Red Bull is indeed having talks with, and looking at the data for, Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda, Perez interjected: "All I can say is I've got a contract that I signed in the middle of the year to race for the team for the next two years.

"So yeah, we'll see what happens and how the conversation goes in the coming days."

The Mexican then confirmed he is also already in conversation with Christian Horner over the potential contract stand-off.

"We are talking, to see what's best moving forwards," he said. "We'll see what happens in the coming days."

Having previously said he did not know what was to come, and having placed an emphasis on the content and outcome on the continuation of the talks, Perez shifted tone, highlighting his existing contract if an agreement cannot be reached.

"Like I said, we're going to be talking in the coming days and we will discuss the situation from both parties, and see if we are able to reach an agreement," he explained. "If not, like I said, I've got a contract for next year."

When asked if he was considering resigning from his race seat, he replied: "No."

At no point did he mention retirement from F1.