Max Verstappen reveals that he nudged his compatriot Nyck de Vries to call Red Bull chief adviser Helmut Marko, which gained him a move.
After Pierre Gasly was announced as the new Alpine driver, AlphaTauri quickly announced Nyck de Vries as his replacement. The Dutchman’s move to Red Bull’s sister team came after several dots matched for him.
His sole appearance for Williams in Monza resulted in several teams noticing de Vries’ talent. The Dutchman bagged two points from the race In Italy after his P9 finish.
Little was it known that Max Verstappen would play a pivotal role in getting de Vries a seat based on that performance. The Dutchman reveals how he helped his countryman in getting an AlphaTauri seat.
Also read: Lewis Hamilton quashes hopes of 2022 Japanese GP win
Max Verstappen nudged Nyck de Vries
The Red Bull superstar reveals that he met de Vries a day after the race in Monza. They reportedly had dinner together, and then Verstappen convinced the Formula E superstar to call Helmut Marko.
“We had a dinner the day after Monza, and I told him, just give [Marko] a call. You never know what happens,” Verstappen said to Motorsport.com.
Almost a month later, de Vries is confirmed as the AlphaTauri driver for the 2023 season. Despite heavy rumours earlier too, this move gained massive traction among fans on Saturday.
How did FIA denying a license to Colton Herta favoured de Vries?
It was known that Gasly was supposed to leave AlphaTauri in 2023. His closeness with Alpine was too obvious for the F1 media not to notice. However, earlier IndyCar sensation Colton Herta was supposed to replace Gasly in the Italian team.
But his lacking eight points forced FIA to deny him a super license. After several Red Bull pleas, the motorsport governing body didn’t even make an exception.
Ultimately, this worked in favour of de Vries, who will be vying for Red Bull’s camp after leaving Mercedes’ helm for this most awaited F1 stint.
Also read: How Williams had to pay $80,000 fine for Pastor Maldonado’s car at Japanese GP
