When it comes to the talent pool at the Red Bull hierarchy, the team rarely falls short. Over the years, some of the most talented drivers in the sport’s history have risen through the ranks at Red Bull including Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen.
However, the chief advisor and the co-creator of Red Bull’s young driver program Helmut Marko is not entirely convinced of the youngsters at their disposal today. According to multiple reports, he is not a fan of Tsunoda and Nyck de Vries, the drivers for AlphaTauri, Red Bull’s sister team.
Marko wants both of them to prove that they belong in F1 before even considering a future for them at Red Bull. This news will be disappointing for both of them, who will have one eye on the Red Bull seat, which is the place to be in F1 right now. However, taking what Marko feels into account, neither Tsunoda nor de Vries have a shot at replacing Verstappen or Sergio Perez at Red Bull.
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Who will replace Max Verstappen at Red Bull?
In the case of Verstappen or Perez not being able to race at any particular outing in 2023, Red Bull won’t call up Tsunoda or De Vries. They have a structure in place with drivers lined up to replace their main men in case they are unable to compete.
Red Bull’s official reserve drivers for the 2023 season are Liam Lawson, Dennis Hauger and Zane Maloney. However, there is a chance that none of them will be the first choice in Verstappen/Perez’s absence.
Daniel Ricciardo, who won races with the Milton-Keynes-based outfit between 2014 to 2018, returned to the team as a third driver. With his immense racing pedigree backing him, Ricciardo has the best chance of being called up for a one-time outing among all drivers.
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Verstappen aiming for third title in a row
AlphaTauri as a team are struggling right now, with the gap between them and their parent team being staggering. Red Bull meanwhile, are on cloud nine after a perfect start to the 2023 season. Verstappen dominated the Bahrain GP from the start to the finish, and Perez followed him to bring home a 1-2 finish for the Austrian team.
It is still early days in the 2023 season, but it seems like a steep uphill challenge for any team that wants to step up to Red Bull. Verstappen is the firm favorite to win his third consecutive world championship.
