Marko: Lack of improvement sealed de Vries' fate

Helmut Marko says Nyck de Vries' clear lack of improvement since the start of the 2023 season led to Red Bull's decision to replace the Dutchman at AlphaTauri with Daniel Ricciardo with immediate effect.

De Vries, a former FIA Formula 2 and Formula E Champion, had earned his seat with Red Bull Racing's sister outfit following his remarkable one-ff drive to ninth with Williams in last year's Italian Grand Prix at Monza.

But the Dutchman's inability to perform on a par with his AlphaTauri teammate Yuki Ysunoda led to growing speculation surrounding his drive and a mid-season exit.

Last month, AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost called for patience, backing de Vries to eventually up his game, insisting the Dutchman "knows how to win races".

But in light of de Vries continued underperformance and lack of progress, Marko chose to put an end to the latter's tenure in F1 with Red Bull.

• Read also: De Vries out, Ricciardo in at AlphaTauri!

"We contracted Nyck because he performed great at Monza last year," Marko told Dutch publication De Telegraaf.

"We expected him to be at least equal to his team-mate Yuki Tsunoda this year, but that was not the case. Actually, he was always three-tenths of a second slower. We didn’t see any improvement."

One could argue that judging an F1 rookie's performance over just ten races perhaps is anything but fair. But Marko suggests that he never considered de Vries as a genuine debutant who deserved to be given more time to perform.

"He is 28 years old, has a lot of experience, and has also been able to gain a lot of knowledge as a test driver in various Formula 1 cars," contended the Austrian.

"You can’t compare him to a young rookie in my eyes. At the end of April in Baku, he started the weekend well and I thought he was going to perform better, but then he crashed again.

"He, unfortunately, didn’t do one super lap that we were amazed by.

"We had to do something. Why should we wait and what do two more races matter if you don’t see any improvement? Nyck is a very pleasant guy, but the speed just wasn’t there."

Adding a bit of salt to de Vries' wounds, the always candid Marko doubted that the Dutchman will be seen again in F1.

"[Another F1 seat] will be difficult, I think," he said. "But at the same time, I do think he saw this coming. I think he can build a nice career in long-distance racing."

Regarding Ricciardo's return to the fray, Marko admitted that the latter's tyre test with Red Bull at Silverstone on Tuesday was a deal-breaker for the Aussie.

"His lap times were competitive, on three different tyre sets," Marko revealed. "Had Ricciardo not had the speed, we would have had to consider something else.

"But AlphaTauri is not in a good position and is last in the Constructors’ standings, so we have to do something to bring something about. That often happens after a driver change, Ricciardo brings new energy to the team."

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