George Russell points the finger at Red Bull over Nyck de Vries treatment
Mercedes driver George Russell has criticised Red Bull’s treatment of Nyck de Vries, claiming the Dutchman “didn’t get the opportunity he deserved” at AlphaTauri in F1 2023.
After struggling for pace and consistency alongside team-mate Yuki Tsunoda, De Vries was ruthlessly dropped by the Red Bull junior team following July’s British Grand Prix to make way for Daniel Ricciardo.
De Vries failed to score a point in 10 appearances for AlphaTauri, having finished an impressive ninth in a stand-in appearance for Williams at the 2022 Italian GP.
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De Vries had close links to Mercedes prior to landing his Red Bull shot, representing the German manufacturer in the all-electric Formula E category – winning the title in 2021 – as well as holding a reserve driver role with the F1 operation.
He participated in two practice sessions for Mercedes last season, driving Russell’s car in Mexico having replaced Lewis Hamilton in France.
Red Bull opted not to protect De Vries as his place at AlphaTauri came under increasing scrutiny, with Helmut Markorevealing shortly before his dismissal thatChristian Horner’s reservations about signing the 28-year-old for 2023 were proving accurate.
Russell feels De Vries was never given a proper chance to shine at AlphaTauri, claiming Red Bull piled too much pressure on his shoulders by assuming that he would slot seamlessly into the team leadership role vacated by Alpine-bound Pierre Gasly.
According to RacingNews365, he said: “I wouldn’t have expected it in any other team. Obviously, we know how Red Bull operates and you need to respect how they do things.
“I didn’t follow Nyck closely during his time at AlphaTauri, but I saw the reports and things that Helmut said and it is a difficult place to go if you’re lacking confidence.
“For sure, they didn’t help him to gain confidence starting the season by saying he’s going to be the leader of the team [as] he is a rookie.
“It doesn’t matter that he is 27 or 28 years old, he is a Formula 1 rookie and you can’t go in telling the rookie that you are the leader of the team just because you’ve raced in more Championships than your team-mate.
“He was in a difficult position from when he started so I do feel bad for him. He is Formula 1 level, but didn’t get the opportunity that he deserved.”
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This is not the first time Russell has spoken out in support of an under-fire Red Bull driver, with the 25-year-old claiming during the 2020 season that Alex Albon was “being made to look like an idiot and he’s absolutely not” in the midst of his struggles alongside Max Verstappen.
Red Bull and AlphaTauri’s driver plans have been plunged into more doubt after Ricciardo suffered a broken hand in just his third race back at Zandvoort, with the Australian hopeful of returning to action in Singapore next month.
Ricciardo被21年,在短时间内取代old New Zealander Liam Lawson, who now has the chance to state his case for a full-time drive having spent the first half of the 2023 season competing in the Super Formula series in Japan.
Over the Dutch GP weekend, meanwhile, Marko and Hornerseemed at odds on the subject of whetherSergio Perez will remain as Verstappen’s team-mate for 2024 after an alarming mid-season slump.
Read next:F1 rumours: ‘There are already agreements about a separation between Perez and Red Bull’
