This was the fate of Perez' predecessors at Red Bull

From last night onwards, the confirmation of Sergio ‘Checo’ Perez with the team of Christian Horner and Helmut Marko already hangs in the air. Awaiting the official message from Milton Keynes, this is an excellent moment to look back at the predecessors of Perez as a non Red Bull-junior who will come to represent the Austrian team after. Who were his predecessors and how did they fare at Red Bull Racing?

As an experienced driver, Perez’ likely move to Red Bull is remarkable, as the team often looks to reap the rewards of its own junior training program. Nevertheless, Perez is not the first driver who will race for the team without having enjoyed a Red Bull education. Below is a list of the drivers who preceded him, and their degrees of success with the team. 

Robert Doornbos

Ziggo sport’s own Robert Doornbos is the captain of the list. In 2006 Doornbos was the third driver at Red Bull to take over the place of the Austrian Christian Klien in the last three races of the season. In these three races the Dutch driver finished twelfth, thirteenth and twelfth respectively. 

Doornbos did not come from the Red Bull junior program. Instead, he made his GP debut with Minardi in 2005. Here he was the teammate of his fellow Dutchman Christijan Albers. Doornbos did not have a long career at Red Bull: a year after his three races in the RB2 he was passed for a spare seat at both Red Bull and Sauber. Doornbos then left for the United States to participate in the Champ Car World Series.

David Coulthard

David Coulthard, another well-known name within Formula 1, is also one of Sergio Perez' predecessors. After previous stints at Williams and Mclaren, Coulthard was presented as a driver at Red Bull for 2005. He stayed on until 2008, when he was replaced by Sebastian Vettel. 

In 2006 the Scottish driver achieved his first podium finish for the team, but he remained largely unrewarded in the rest of his stint for the team. This was a shock for both the team and the fans, as Coulthard won a total of 13 races for Mclaren and Williams. For Coulthard, switching to Red Bull should be considered a curse rather than a blessing. 

Mark Webber

A success story of a Red Bull driver without the Red Bull training comes with the name Mark Webber. The well-known Australian driver joined the team in 2007, and stayed on until his exit from Formula 1 in 2013. Webber also did not come from the junior training of RBR; Christian Horner and Helmut Marko took him away from Williams in 2007. 

Webber's move to Red Bull was a blessing for his racing career. In cooperation with the team he managed to finish third in the championship up to three times. However, one of the reasons why Webber did not manage to win a championship was because of Sebastian Vettel, the German who was promoted from Toro Rosso to the flagship in 2008. The two became embroiled in a long battle for the world title, and Vettel beat the Australian time and again to become world champion in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. If this rivalry between a driver, both from the Red Bull program and not, predicts anything, then another fierce battle awaits us in 2021.