Dr Helmut Marko has been revealing details about Audi's proposed contract to former Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz.
Red Bull Racing seems poised to extend Sergio Perez's contract into the next season, and Red Bull's leading F1 advisor, Marko, acknowledges Perez's unique contributions beyond his racing skills alongside Max Verstappen.
"He brings Mexican sponsors with him," Marko, aged 80, disclosed to the Osterreich newspaper. "His demands are more about the length of the contract."
While Red Bull appears to be considering only a one-year extension for the 34-year-old Perez for 2025, it's rumored that the Audi-backed Sauber team might offer him a significantly longer tenure if he decides to leave.
Marko also indicated that Sainz is receiving a similar proposal from Audi, stating in an interview with Kleine Zeitung newspaper that the offer includes "a very lucrative offer from Audi that we can't match or beat."
In another discussion with Osterreich, Marko elaborated on Sainz's situation.
"Look, Sainz is currently in great shape," he noted. "I think he has a very great three-year offer from Audi, but he has to make a decision relatively soon."
"We, on the other hand, won't make a decision soon," Marko emphasized. "We won't let things like that put us under pressure."
Sainz has been linked with a potential move to Mercedes in 2025, although this might also only extend for a year.
"I won't talk about (team) names, because I don't want them to be in the headline - 'Carlos said this or that'," Sainz remarked in Shanghai. "When I said that we have been talking to all the teams, I mean that we have been talking to all the teams!"
"I'm sure there are very interesting options in the medium term, not even the long term, that I will consider and am considering. Each option, without a doubt, has its advantages and disadvantages."
"The best thing is that all the good options are still there and we can still consider them all."
Regarding the possibility of a one-year contract with Red Bull or Mercedes, Sainz suggested, "it would of course be very tempting to get a competitive car for 2025."
"But that doesn't just depend on me," he added.
"I think it shows how hard F1 is," Sainz explained to Spanish-speaking journalists in China. "Someone who is doing well doesn't know where they are going to race next year, which in other sports doesn't happen so often."
"F1 is a particular, political, but also exciting sport. It will be entertaining when Netflix shows what's going on," he concluded with a smile.
