Sergio Perez’s new manager Adrian Fernandez insists that his protégé earned his place at McLaren on merit – and says he is not bringing money to the team.
Former Champcar/IndyCar racer Fernandez worked with Sergio’s father before the future F1 star was even born, and has helped him in the background over the years via his connections with Telmex. He has now formally taken over the management role.
“Sergio is an unbelievable driver and he has earned his place at McLaren,” said Fernandez on his website. “He is not bringing money to the team. He has been hired to race. His performances earned him this position and that made my job easier because people were interested in him.
“The past few weeks have been hectic, but I am extremely proud of this accomplishment for Sergio, for his career and for our country. This is something that began a long, long time ago with Carlos Slim and Telmex – who supported Sergio’s career for many years – and the dream was realized when he joined the Formula One ranks.
“I am very thankful to Carlos and Sergio for letting me be a small part of the team then, and now to be actually taking over Sergio’s management. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without the help and support of Carlos and Telmex.
“It has been very enjoyable to work with McLaren, and I have to take my hat off to Martin Whitmarsh, team principal, and everyone that we worked with to make this deal possible. It took a lot of work and I was very impressed with the level of professionalism from Martin and his team and I have to thank all of them.
Fernandez also thanked the Sauber team: “We obviously owe a huge amount of thanks to Peter Sauber and his team, who gave Sergio the opportunity to compete in Formula One and show what he can do. I know that Sergio will be putting forth all his effort to finish on the highest note he can for them this year.”
Meanwhile Fernandez said he was looking forward to the new challenge: “For me, it is hard to describe how happy I am. As many of you know, I have been a part of Sergio’s life since he was a kid and his father worked for me for many years.
“He calls me “uncle” and, even though we are not related by blood, it just shows how tight our relationship is. So, to see this all the way through to today’s announcement, to know how bright his future is and to be a part of it puts me in a rare occasion – at a loss for words.
“I have been a successful driver and a successful team owner and now, with this, I hope I can be a successful manager and do a fantastic job for Sergio so he can really dedicate himself to racing and I can take care of the other areas which, to be honest, are the areas that I have been doing all of my life. I think it’s a good combination, and I definitely think we have a potential World Champion in our hands. As I have said, Mexico’s future in Formula 1 is shining brightly.”
Adam Cooper F1 
I actually had no idea who McLaren would sign if Lewis left, Sergio never entered my mind. I’ll be interested to see how he gets on.
If there’s anyone Fernandez has 2 thank, it’s gotta be Spice Boy’s management team.
Think we’re going back to 2002 situation at McLaren, with JB playing DC’s role and Perezz doing Kimi. Looks OK to me. Should Vodafone quit, there’s always a coupla Mexicano companies behind Serge.
CoTA should have Sergio Perez’s name carved into a prominent rock somewhere because his accession from multiple podiums, to pole sitter, to race winner will be quick. You’ll see a few Mexican flags in the crowd this year but next year it’s going to be a wash of green white and red flags. Each one of them another reason Austin was a good spot for a GP. And yes, so are the east and west coasts. Indianapolis, not so much.
I couldn’t agree any more kristian. But I do think the Mexican flags will be out come November because Sergio is already a pretty darn goor driver. As an American living in Austin, I’ll proudly be cheering for Sergio.
Way to go Sergio…
Good choice by Mclaren, Perez is a rising star, and will bring Telmex money to replace the flagging Vodafone commitment. And Martin Whitmarsh will heave a sigh of releif that his life just got a lot simpler and he won’t have a weekly driver drama to deal with.
That’s for sure and if hamilton thinks it’s going to fun at MB he’s confused. I bet there are a lot of Happy People at Woking.
Bet the news took the shine off Ron’s unveiling of the P1 on friday… All the celebs wandering around the garage are Lauda’s problem now (would love to be a fly on that wall).
Adam, Sergio Perez seems to have a quiet personality like Pedro Rodriguez. Do you see any similarities between Pedro and Sergio?
Pedro sealed a place in English F1 fan’s hearts by driving so well for BRM, and perhaps Sergio can emulate that?
Obviously I’ve only read about Pedro but I can assure you that Sergio is a thorougly decent guy and I really hope it works out for him.
I think Perez would do well at McLaren but his manager should not brag about him not bringing money. It was recently in the news that the Vodafone deal is waning. With the richest man in the world behind Checo via Telmex.
No doubt he’s a good driver and has shown this. I think he’ll do well. But i’m keeping my fingers crossed on Hamilton. Anything can happen.