Leading candidate to replace Sergio Perez emerges with Red Bull 'leaning towards' one F1 star

The most likely Formula One driver to replace Sergio Perez at Red Bull after the Abi Dhabi Grand Prix has reportedly been revealed.

Ahead of the final F1 race of the season this weekend in Abu Dhabi, rumours have again began to circulate that Red Bull driver Perez could be set to lose his seat for next year.

The Mexican driver has struggled to find form in 2024, leaving him eighth in the drivers championship and an incredible 277 points behind teammate Max Verstappen.

And now, a new report has revealed the most likely driver to replace Perez should he lose his seat following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

German journalist Felix Gorner has claimed that Racing Bulls driver Yuki Tsunoda could be promoted to the Red Bull team if Perez is sacked ahead of the 2025 campaign .

Writing in sport.de, Gorner revealed: "Speculation continues to be heated in the Formula 1 paddock about who will be Max Verstappen’s new teammate next year.

"At Red Bull, Yuki Tsunoda is currently tipped to replace Sergio Perez. He is currently in the lead when it comes to replacing Checo.

“The question at the moment is: Yuki Tsunoda or Liam Lawson? And both Christian Horner and Helmut Marko are leaning towards Tsunoda at the moment.

“Now we are waiting for the Abu Dhabi race to settle the matter with Perez. But all signs point to a replacement. So we assume that it will end up being Tsunoda.”

Yuki Tsunoda joined Formula One in 2021. (Image: Getty)

After Head of Driver Development Marko confirmed that talented youngster Franco Colapinto will not be considered as an option at Red Bull yet, Tsunoda and Lawson are undoubtedly the most likely candidates to take Perez's seat.

Going into the last race of the season, Tsunoda is 12th in the driver standings with 30 points.

Meanwhile Lawson has managed four points having only joined the team at the end of September after replacing popular Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo following the Singapore Grand Prix.

But with Tsunoda reportedly taking part in Red Bull's post-season test next week, he will have his first chance to show his talents in a Red Bull despite driving for their sister team for nearly 90 races.