Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has insisted his team has done all it can to support a struggling Sergio Perez after a nightmare home weekend in Mexico.

Perez was eliminated in Q1, copped a time penalty for parking forward of his grid spot and then went on to lose further ground after he and RB’s combative Liam Lawson collided in Turn 5, resulting in floor damage.

After conceding to having a “terrible” season, Perez’s calamitous weekend has put further pressure on the 34-year-old to step up, and pressure on Red Bull to reconsider its options for 2025 after sliding to third place in the constructors’ standings.

When pressed on the Mexican’s future, Horner said: “Checo, again, has had a horrible weekend. Nothing has gone right for him this weekend.

“He knows Formula 1 is a results-based business and inevitably, when you’re not delivering, the spotlight is firmly on you.

“There is always going to be scrutiny on that. As a team, we need to have both cars scoring points and that is the nature of Formula 1.”

Asked if that scrutiny applied to 2025 or if Red Bull could make a change sooner than that, Horner confirmed Perez would be in the car in Brazil but didn’t offer much reassurance beyond the upcoming Sao Paulo weekend.

Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images

“From the team’s perspective, we’re working with him as hard as we can to try to support him,” he added. “We’ve done everything that we can to support Checo and will continue to do so in Brazil next weekend.

“But there comes a point in time that you can only do so much. There comes a point in time that difficult decisions have to be made.

“We’re now third in the constructors’ championship. Our determination is to try and get back into a winning position but it’s going to be a tall order over these next four races.”

Perez was furious with Lawson’s aggressive driving style, blaming the New Zealander – who is in the running for Perez’s seat – for ruining his chance to score points as his floor damage resulted in a big downforce loss.

But Horner didn’t appear to side fully with either driver. “That’s racing. We saw a lot of tough racing out there,” he told Sky Sports F1.

In his print media session, Horner – drawing attention to recent insinuations that Red Bull and RB work together as an entity – then added: “I think it demonstrates that you can see the two teams do race each other and, while having the same ownership, are independent in the way that they go racing.

“Liam has apologised to Checo for the incident and obviously, there will be lessons that come out of that. But it’s frustrating, certainly for Checo’s race, to pick up the damage and lose valuable points.”

Fernando Alonso will be a late arrival at Formula 1’s Brazilian Grand Prix, after needing to return to Europe for treatment for an infection after the Mexico City Grand Prix.

The Spaniard had been unwell in the build-up to last weekend’s race, missing the media day but recovered in time to compete through the three days as he celebrated his 400th F1 weekend.

But Aston Martin says that the intestinal infection that struck him down forced him to travel back to Europe in recent days for treatment from a specialist.

Those efforts appear to have paid off and Alonso is now scheduled to fly to Brazil in time to take part in opening practice on Friday, although he will again miss Thursday’s media activities.

An Aston Martin statement said: “The extra day of treatment has delayed his travel plans to Brazil but ensures he will be ready for this weekend’s racing.”

Although Alonso was able to drive the car in Mexico, he admitted over the course of the weekend that it had not been especially easy for him.

“I’ve been not 100% physically last few days,” he admitted, before ultimately retiring from the race. “But I think this circuit is also not super demanding in terms of G-forces and high speed.”

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

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With Brazil being a sprint race, so extra points available, Alonso will want to make sure that he is in the best physical shape possible to maximise any opportunities that come up.

But were there to be any unexpected complications, then Aston Martin would likely slot in its reserve driver Felipe Drugovich – who will be present at his home race this weekend.

Speaking about his original plans for the event prior to the Alonso situation emerging, the Brazilian said: “I’ll be doing a lot of interviews with local media, keeping across all the sessions when Lance and Fernando are out on track, and supporting the team with feedback.

“I’ll enjoy being home as well. The São Paulo Grand Prix is always one I love attending because I get a lot of attention from the crowd and the media and I try and embrace that. Their support means a lot.”

NASCAR has suspended the 18-year-old Conner Jones for one race after his decision to intentionally wreck Matt Mills last weekend left his rival hospitalized. Jones was battling for 17th in the Homestead Truck race when he let his frustrations overcome him. Entering Turn 3, Jones drove into the back of Mills in an attempted bump-and-run. However, Mills’ truck snapped hard to the right and slammed the wall, quickly erupting into flames.

Mills, who climbed from the fiery wreckage under his own power, spent two nights at a local hospital due to smoke inhalation. Jones was held two laps after the incident during the Truck race at Homestead. 

After the race, Jones released a statement expressing regret and apologizing for his actions, saying: “I underestimated the impact my actions would have on Matt, and I deeply regret the consequences that followed. I would like to extend my sincerest apologies to Matt, Niece Motorsports, NASCAR, and my entire ThorSport Racing team for my unsportsmanlike behavior.”

The two drivers have had run-ins before. In a video message posted by Mills after being released from the hospital with a self-described ‘raspy’ voice, thanking everyone for their support and made it clear that he will be racing this weekend. “Definitely a scary situation,” he said, but he never mentioned Jones.

Jones was slated to compete this weekend at Martinsville. ThorSport will instead put veteran driver Johnny Sauter behind the wheel of the No. 66 machine. The 2016 Truck Series champion has over 300 starts in his career and previously competed for ThorSport.

There are plenty of positives Arrow McLaren driver Pato O’Ward sees with the IndyCar Series returning to Texas in March 2026 with the inaugural Grand Prix of Arlington, but it’s also not without its concerns.

The event was announced by the series earlier this month, in partnership with the National Football League’s Dallas Cowboys and REV Entertainment, the official entertainment partner of Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers. The 2.73-mile temporary street circuit, will run around Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium and Rangers’ Globe Life Field, as well as through the sports and entertainment district that sells more than 1.6 million tickets to spectators for various events annually. So far, it has received plenty of praise, with several drivers in the paddock noting its similarities to something seen in Formula 1. 

The Lone Star State is familiar territory for O’Ward, who is a native of Monterrey, Mexico, but also grew up in San Antonio, Texas. He also won his first career IndyCar race at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS) in 2021. IndyCar competed at TMS from 1997-2023.

Overall, O’Ward is hoping the event will push the sport to new heights. 

Arlington Grand Prix track map

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

“I think that event is going to be a big test to what new markets and what we can ultimately reach in terms of a bit more upscale than some of the other tracks, other events that we have on the calendar,” O’Ward told Motorsport.com. 

“The venue looks really cool. Jerry Jones (Cowboys owner) is a very well-known name and he owns one of the most insane franchises in the NFL; one of the teams in the NFL that obviously draws a lot of eyes, a lot of public (interest). I don’t know, man. Until we do that first event, we’ll really see what that can ultimately bring to the series. Texas is a huge market. We were missing out on that market and I’m glad that it’s back on the calendar. I think it’ll be huge for the series but also a test on just having an idea on how much further we can go in terms of experiences, what are people willing to pay for that experience?”

And the cost factor is where O’Ward, who has seven career IndyCar victories, remains apprehensive.

“I think there’s a lot of questions to be asked if that event is a massive success and I think that can ultimately elevate the series to a different level,” O’Ward said. “But, there’s always the possibility of having it the other way and that’s definitely something we don’t want. I’m a bit worried on the pricing of everything. I’ve spent thousands of dollars of my own money to create experiences for people and sometimes a lot of those do come out at a loss because in IndyCar’s market, people aren’t willing to pay over $1,000 for a paddock ticket. And there definitely is the market to do that because people pay $10,000 to $15,000 in Formula 1, but can we tap into that market? I don’t know.”

06:00

Circuit Closed

06:30 ~ 07:00

Circuit Inspection

07:45 ~ 08:30

Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix – 56th Edition – Free Practice

09:15 ~ 09:55

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Free Practice 1

10:15 ~ 10:45

Macau Guia Race – Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Free Practice 1

11:05 ~ 11:35

Macau GT Cup – FIA GT World Cup – Free Practice 1

12:15 ~ 12:45

Greater Bay Area GT Cup (GT 4) – Free Practice

13:00 ~ 13:30

Macau Roadsport Challenge- Free Practice

13:45 ~ 14:15

Macau Guia Race – Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Free Practice 2

14:35 ~ 15:05

Macau GT Cup – FIA GT World Cup – Free Practice 2

15:25 ~ 16:05

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Qualifying 1

16:25 ~ 16:55

Macau Roadsport – Macao SAR Establishment Cup – Free Practice

18:00 ~ **

Circuit Opened

06:00

Circuit Closed

06:30 ~ 07:00

Circuit Inspection

07:45 ~ 08:30

Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix – 56th Edition – Qualifying 1

09:20 ~ 10:00

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Free Practice 2

10:15 ~ 10:45

Macau Roadsport Challenge- Qualifying

11:00 ~ 11:30

Greater Bay Area GT Cup (GT 4) – Qualifying

12:10 ~ 12:40

Macau Roadsport – Macao SAR Establishment Cup- Qualifying

12:55 ~13:25

Macau Guia Race – Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Qualifying 1

13:30 ~ 13:45

Macau Guia Race -Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Qualifying 2

14:05 ~ 14:35

Macau GT Cup – FIA GT World Cup – Qualifying

14:55 ~ 15:35

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Qualifying 2

16:15 ~ 17:00

Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix – 56th Edition – Qualifying 2

18:00 ~ **

Circuit Opened