Nick de Vries was driving three tenths slower than Yuki Tsunoda

AlphaTauri has just dismissed Nyck de Vries before the halfway point of the Formula 1 season. Daniel Ricciardo has been tasked with taking over the seat of the driver at the bottom of the championship.

Helmut Marko, who put pressure on the Dutch driver during a few Grand Prix, chose, along with Franz Tost, to dismiss Nyck de Vries.

« We signed Nyck because he performed very well at Monza last year. We expected him to be at least equal to his teammate this year, but that was not the case. In fact, he has always been three tenths slower. We have not seen any improvement, explained the Red Bull advisor to the Dutch media Telegraaf.

The 80-year-old Austrian doesn’t consider the 2021 Formula E champion as a rookie for F1. « He is 28 years old, has a lot of experience and also a lot of knowledge as a test driver in various F1 cars. I don’t think you can compare him to a young recruit. At the end of April, in Baku, he started the weekend well and I thought he would perform better, but he still crashed. Unfortunately, he has never done a single outstanding lap that impressed us. »

Nyck is a very nice guy, but the speed just wasn’t there.

“The Italo-Austrian stable did not wait for the summer break to replace its driver. Helmut Marko and Franz Tost chose to implement this change with immediate effect after the Pirelli tire tests conducted by Daniel Ricciardo.”

« We had to do something. Why should we wait and what difference does it make to have two additional races if you don’t see any improvement? Nyck is a very nice guy, but the speed just wasn’t there », insisted the Red Bull advisor.

The Austrian doesn’t think he will see the Dutchman again in Formula 1, but he affirms that Nyck de Vries will continue his career in motorsport: « It will be difficult, I think. But at the same time, I think he saw it coming. He can build a great career in endurance racing. »