F1 News: Nyck de Vries In Hot Water As Red Bull Insider Reveals Behind The Scenes Discussions
Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko has revealed that team principal Christian Horner didn't want to sign Nyck de Vries for AlphaTauri, and now confirms that "he was right".
During last year's pre-season, Marko held strong convictions that Nyck de Vries would be a great asset for AlphaTauri, especially after his incredible debut at the Italian Grand Prix when he had to step in last minute for Alex Albon. Marko and AlphaTauri team chief Franz Tost viewed de Vries as an essential piece in elevating the team. Tost publicly lauded de Vries' invaluable input to the engineers during winter on F1TV.
However, Tsunoda is now widely recognised as AlphaTauri's top driver, outclassing de Vries in numerous categories. Marko openly discussed Horner's initial doubts regarding de Vries during the Inside Line F1 Podcast, stating:
“The team management and the team principal, it’s a common decision.
“Not often [does he disagree with Christian Horner], but sometimes we do. The last one, I would say, is Nyck de Vries.
“And at the moment, it looks like he [Christian Horner] was right… He was not a fan of Nyck de Vries.”
Marko has also previously expressed concerns about de Vries' slower start to the season. Despite these issues, he complimented de Vries' performance in Monaco, revealing a glimmer of hope. Still, de Vries' continuity with the team seems tenuous with potential replacements like Red Bull junior team drivers, Liam Lawson and Ayumu Iwasa, waiting for their opportunity. On top of this, Mercedes CEO Toto Wolff is hoping to help Mick Schumacher to secure a permanent seat back on the grid as well as Daniel Ricciardo looking for a comeback.
While Tost has defended de Vries, arguing that F1 rookies need time to settle into it and the team, it seems that de Vries' contract extension is not guaranteed at the moment with him being one of just two who are yet to put points on the board.