Photo: Williams F1 Team
As a Formula 1 reserve driver, the debut made at the Italian GP by Nyck de Vries is the stuff dreams are made of. With only a couple of hours of practice in the car, he managed to deliver a result that blew the minds of all F1 fans.
However, it was not just the fans who were impressed with his performance but also a very influential team advisor in the paddock called Helmut Marko. You must understand that Nyck’s debut was not like any other. Usually, a driver has time to get familiar with the car he is going to drive. However, de Vries only had minutes to prepare before getting thrown into the Williams car in FP3 and delivering an amazing result in a high-pressure scenario.
Even so, it is a difficult task to get the attention of the Red Bull team, but de Vries managed just that. Albeit that happened with some unintentional help from the FIA, which refused to give Colton Herta a super license exemption due to fear of backlash. With that happening, it was looking more and more unlikely that Alpha Tauri would let go of Pierre Gasly, who was rumored to be looking for a move to Alpine.
But then came the bombshell that was the Italian GP. Although he says he still sees a career in Formula 1 as anything but certain, de Vries confirmed during the Dutch talk show Humberto op Zaterdag that he met with Red Bull consultant Helmut Marko. This had been speculated before but now we are starting to get a clearer picture.
With the muddy situation at Alpha Tauri, it seems that Red Bull is ready to welcome another member into their family and let Gasly move away from the team. Whether they will manage to get hold of de Vries that is a different story. The Dutch driver is currently in talks with three different teams, and a seat in Alpha Tauri would most likely see him looking towards promotion as Max Verstappen’s lieutenant.
This situation led de Vries to say that things are largely out of his control. However, no matter where he ends up racing, if he even does, he managed to impress Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, who stated that Niki Lauda would have taken his hat off for Nyck’s stellar performance in Monza. This means we might even see him replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes in the coming years when the British 7-time World Champion decides to retire.
Even so, it is a difficult task to get the attention of the Red Bull team, but de Vries managed just that. Albeit that happened with some unintentional help from the FIA, which refused to give Colton Herta a super license exemption due to fear of backlash. With that happening, it was looking more and more unlikely that Alpha Tauri would let go of Pierre Gasly, who was rumored to be looking for a move to Alpine.
But then came the bombshell that was the Italian GP. Although he says he still sees a career in Formula 1 as anything but certain, de Vries confirmed during the Dutch talk show Humberto op Zaterdag that he met with Red Bull consultant Helmut Marko. This had been speculated before but now we are starting to get a clearer picture.
With the muddy situation at Alpha Tauri, it seems that Red Bull is ready to welcome another member into their family and let Gasly move away from the team. Whether they will manage to get hold of de Vries that is a different story. The Dutch driver is currently in talks with three different teams, and a seat in Alpha Tauri would most likely see him looking towards promotion as Max Verstappen’s lieutenant.
This situation led de Vries to say that things are largely out of his control. However, no matter where he ends up racing, if he even does, he managed to impress Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, who stated that Niki Lauda would have taken his hat off for Nyck’s stellar performance in Monza. This means we might even see him replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes in the coming years when the British 7-time World Champion decides to retire.
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