Helmut Marko has addressed the rumors about various driver transfers. He thinks that Carlos Sainz in particular will have to make some decisions soon, but indicates that he wants to keep his options open for the time being, with one seat still available for 2025, and some uncertainty about the future of Max Verstappen.
While the weekend in Australia ended on a downer for Red Bull Racing, Marko had a lot to smile about after the weekend in Japan, with three strong-performing drivers. ‘At the second start, Yuki Tsunoda did sensationally,’ says Marko in his column at Speedweek about the home driver. Tsunoda had a bad start at the first start, dropping from ninth to twelfth on the medium tires. At the restart, after the red flag, the Japanese shot on the soft rubber past Valtteri Bottas, Nico Hülkenberg, and George Russell to ninth place.
Compliments to Tsunoda and Pérez
Tsunoda also impressed the team advisor in the rest of the race. ‘His overtakes were the show of the day. The fans went crazy. His performance was at the same level as that of Max and Fernando Alonso: a great performance under pressure from the home crowd,” shares the 80-year-old from Graz.
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Apart from Daniel Ricciardo’s crash, Helmut Marko only had positive news. ‘Checo (Pérez, ed.) was also very strong. He was unlucky at the pit stop, but he got back into the race thanks to a great overtake on Hamilton in 130R. He’s definitely having his strongest season yet.” Pérez finished second three times, and fifth once. In 2023, the Mexican took two wins, two second places, and a fifth place in the first five races. Then things quickly went downhill for Pérez from Monaco.
Silly Season has already started
There have been many different rumors floating around the Formula 1 paddock for weeks. ‘In my opinion, the fact that the rumor mill is already running at full speed regarding the driver market is due to several factors. Firstly, this is because Lewis Hamilton announced his transfer to Ferrari so early. If we can believe Radio Paddock, Audi wants to hear a decision from Carlos Sainz soon, the Austrian has found a new name for Silly Season.
“Aston Martin is also putting pressure on various options,” Marko continues. Adrian Newey has already been linked with the British team, and Max Verstappen, Yuki Tsunoda, and Carlos Sainz have also been mentioned at Aston Martin. ‘We don’t participate in these games ourselves. You won’t hear anything from Red Bull Racing until the middle of the season when it comes to personnel.’ Marko thus contradicts Sergio Pérez, who indicated in Japan that he expects clarity within a month.
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