For the first time, Helmut Marko himself has responded to the rumors regarding Nyck de Vries. The Dutchman is said to be under pressure at AlphaTauri and will only have three more races to significantly improve his results. Otherwise, it could be the end of the road for the former champion of Formula 2 and Formula E.
Marko dismisses the three-race ultimatum when speaking with F1-Insider. "Nothing will happen in the next three races," the motorsport chief of Red Bull Racing explains. However, there has been a conversation with De Vries. "And he agrees that he needs to do better. The gap with Yuki Tsunoda, who is doing well, is too big. To use football jargon: Nyck has only received a yellow card, not a red one. If he improves, a driver switch is not on the agenda."
However, if a driver switch would occur, Daniel Ricciardo shouldn't expect a call from Marko. "In the worst case, we would fall back on our pool of young talent. Specifically, Liam Lawson and Ayumu Iwasa. Ricciardo is not a topic," Marko firmly states. Mick Schumacher, also a reserve driver for Mercedes, is not being considered either. "Toto Wolff is responsible for him."
It's an interesting leap Marko is making. According to F1-Insider, Wolff is trying to convince Williams team boss and former right-hand man James Vowles to bring Schumacher back to Formula 1. The German driver lost his seat at Haas after last season, and Wolff is eager for his confidant Vowles to replace Logan Sargeant with Schumacher.