Helmut Marko: Horner “was not a fan” of Nyck de Vries

Nyck de Vries had dazzled everyone at Monza in 2022, replacing Albon in the Williams and scoring 2 points. From then on, everything had sped up for the Dutchman. With Pierre Gasly leaving for Alpine, AlphaTauri needed to find a driver. Initially, Schumacher was considered the desired driver by the Faenza team, but ultimately it was Nyck de Vries in the AT04. However, after a very difficult first third of the season, his presence raises questions.

Horner did not want de Vries

Although the seat that needed to be filled was an AlphaTauri seat, Red Bull had a say in it. One must say that as the “parent team,” they often have a strong influence in the choice of AlphaTauri drivers. In fact, it’s AlphaTauri, but we are a big family and we have opinions,” said Helmut Marko.

More than just opinions, Christian Horner, boss of Red Bull, did not want to see Nyck de Vries arrive at the wheel of the AlphaTauri. According to Marko, Horner was not a fan of De Vries. In fact, it was one of the few times where Horner and Marko disagreed.

De Vries has completely failed to meet expectations at the beginning of the season, not living up to the expectations of both AlphaTauri and Red Bull. Helmut Marko seems to increasingly echo the same sentiment as Horner: “I would say that, for now, it seems like Horner is right,” the Austrian declared.

The one who was not really listened to: Franz Tost

On the list, there weren’t many who could claim that seat. Mick Schumacher was one of those drivers. Leaving Haas, the German wanted to stay in F1 and was initially favored by Franz Tost to join AlphaTauri. However, that was not the case.

According to Helmut Marko, recruiting Mick Schumacher was somewhat contradictory. Franz Tost wanted Mick Schumacher, but Mick has spent his entire career at the Ferrari Academy, stated the Austrian technician.

Nyck de Vries was a much better fit for AlphaTauri’s philosophy according to Marko. Even though the latter had experience in motorsport, he only had one race in F1. Fundamentally, AlphaTauri is a junior team. De Vries is different from Schumacher in the sense that he has only had one race, a very successful one at Monza, and he could therefore integrate into our philosophy, explained Helmut Marko.

Regardless, Nyck de Vries doesn’t have much time left to regain the trust of his leaders. Rumors are circulating and there is already talk of a possible return of Daniel Ricciardo to F1, with AlphaTauri.