Perez to leave McLaren

Sergio Perez has confirmed that he will leave McLaren at the end of the 2013 season. The Mexican driver, who is in his first (and now only) season with the team, revealed the news in an open letter on his personal website, serioperez.mx.

The letter reads:

“First of all, I would like to thank McLaren for giving me the opportunity to be with them this season. It has been an honor for me to have been in one of the most competitive teams in the sport and I do not regret even a bit having joined them. I have always given the best of me for the team and still despite this I could not achieve what I aimed for in this historic team.

“I am committed to deliver very good results in these last two races, especially in Austin. I am so much looking forward to see all my people gathered together, feel their energy and show them the best of me. I would like to say to every single one of my fans around the world and in my country that I am eternally grateful to them. They have never let me down, especially in difficult moments like these. I truly appreciate their support, they have never forgotten me.

“I have met a lot of new people at McLaren this season and I have made many good friends as well. From the top management level to the marketing, accounting and engineering departments to the mechanics, the cooks, the catering people and basically everyone in the team, I am eternally grateful to them. It has been a learning experience to me.

“I would like to wish the team the very best in the future. I will always be a fan of McLaren. In the meanwhile I will be looking at my future to ensure my position in the best possible package to fight for wins.

“Thanks to McLaren and all of its partners for this season, you can rest assured that I will never give up.”

Perez has had a difficult season with McLaren, largely due to the lack of pace of this year’s McLaren MP4-28. The Mexican’s best finish in 2013 so far has been fifth place at the Indian Grand Prix. With two races left – in the USA this weekend and next week in Brazil – Perez is sitting 12th in the Drivers’ Championship on 35 points, 25 fewer than the tally of his team-mate, Jenson Button. Button has also not managed to finish higher than fifth this season.

It’s not clear yet what will happen to Perez in 2014. He has not been in talks with any other teams, as he assumed that his position at McLaren was safe. With the end of the season looming, there is not a great deal of time for him to negotiate a competitive drive for next year.

McLaren have not yet announced a replacement for Perez for next season. The current rumours suggest that it will be 21-year old Danish driver Kevin Magnussen, son of former F1 driver Jan Magnussen, who made his debut for McLaren at the 1995 Pacific Grand Prix.