One reason to keep Sergio Perez on board at Red Bull has just slipped away.
Although the struggling Mexican’s billionaire backer Carlos Slim publicly supported Perez at the weekend, it now emerges that the biggest Slim-affiliated sponsor - Telmex - will no longer be on the Red Bull car in 2025.
Just days ago, Red Bull announced the "expansion" of its partnership with American telcom giant AT+T - a direct competitor of Telmex’s, particularly in Mexico.
Slim admits Red Bull’s Telmex deal could be axed.
"We are in talks with the team," he said. "We are still talking to them, but the intention will always be to continue to support Checo. We will continue to support him without a doubt.
"Checo’s contract is separate from our sponsorship contribution to the team. It has always been like that since we have been with this team. But if we no longer have the opportunity to work with the team, we will definitely want to continue with Checo.
"The intention is to continue that collaboration, regardless of which team Checo is with."
It is sounding more and more likely that Red Bull and Perez, 34, will soon split.
"We are now only third in the constructors’ championship," said team boss Christian Horner. "As a team, we have done everything we can to support Checo and we will do the same in Brazil.
"But there comes a point when we can’t do any more. That is the point at which difficult decisions have to be made."