F1 driver 'considering' quitting his team after just five races

A big name on the 2026 Formula One grid is reportedly considering leaving his team amid interest from several rivals.

Despite the 2026 F1 season being disrupted by the cancellation of both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grands Prix, there has still been plenty of action so far this year.

After five races this year, it is Mercedes youngster Kimi Antonelli who is leading the Drivers' Championship standings with 131 points, having secured four wins and five podiums.

Teammate George Russell sits behind Antonelli with 88 points as Mercedes enjoy an impressive start to the season with Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton third and fourth in the standings.

One team that is yet to impress this season is newcomers Cadillac, who entered Formula One as the grid's 12th team ahead of the 2026 season.

The American team is currently right at the bottom of the F1 standings, tied with Aston Martin, with both Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez yet to score a single point so far.

Despite this, Dutch F1 journalist Jacky Martins has claimed that it will be 'very hard' for Cadillac to keep hold of Perez as multiple teams are reportedly interested in signing the veteran driver.

And should he have the chance to step up and join a team higher up the standings, it's believed that Perez would jump at the opportunity.

“I know there is interest from some teams,” Martens said on the Paddock Access podcast. “More than one. Cadillac would love to keep him, but it’s going to be very hard to keep him.

“If he can get a promotion to a better team, a bit further up the grid, of course he would consider.”

So far this season, Perez is yet to finish a race higher than 16th place, with his most recent race at the Canadian Grand Prix ending early due to a suspension failure.

Who could replace Perez at Cadillac?

News of Perez's potential move away from Cadillac comes just hours after it was reported that teammate Bottas was at risk of losing his seat at the team due to his performances this season.

It is expected that, should Bottas be sacked, he would be replaced by Cadillac's test driver and F2 star Colton Herta as the 26-year-old American's stock in motorsport continues to rise.

Therefore, it's fair to assume that if Perez were to leave Cadillac before Bottas lost his seat, Herta would instead take the Mexican's seat at Cadillac, with Bottas staying on as the team's senior driver.

In his last race back in Montreal, Herta finished ninth in the sprint race and seventh in the feature race, leading to him taking 12th place in the overall 22-man drivers' standings.