The Red Bull program often pushes aside drivers during the Formula 1 season

Helmut Marko has struck again, once again. Following Nyck de Vries’s poor performances aboard the AlphaTauri since the beginning of the season, the Dutchman has been fired from the Faenza team, being replaced by Daniel Ricciardo. Being a part of the Red Bull family for several years now, if you don’t perform, you risk being sidelined. Nyck de Vries has just suffered this fate.

The 6th time Red Bull does it

This is not the first time that this has happened within Red Bull or its junior team. On the contrary, the replacement of Nyck de Vries by Ricciardo is the 6th driver change during a season carried out by Red Bull since its entry into Formula 1. This practice can be criticized but it mainly demonstrates the uncompromising attitude towards its drivers. Performance is the priority.

From its very beginnings in Formula 1, Red Bull was already practicing this strict policy. We remember the 2006 season in which Christian Klien was fired just three races before the end of the season. He was replaced by Robert Doornbos. Sebastian Vettel took advantage of this by replacing Scott Speed at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2007 with Toro Rosso, which definitively launched his career within the Red Bull family. Finally, in 2009, it was Jaime Alguersuari who replaced Sébastien Bourdais in Hungary with Toro Rosso. Mid-season changes were quite fashionable at Red Bull, but with Sebastian Vettel’s domination at the beginning of the 2010s, this practice had calmed down within the Austrian team. However, it didn’t take long to pick up again. Recently, before Nyck de Vries, two cases perfectly illustrate this “no room for error” policy.

Daniil Kvyat and Max Verstappen

Daniil Kvyat had impressed Red Bull, who had been tempted by promoting him to the “A” team after a good season with Toro Rosso. In 2015, he had a successful year with Red Bull and could continue with the Milton Keynes team in 2016. But this year was very sad for the Russian driver. Red Bull was eager to promote the very young prodigy Max Verstappen and immediately put pressure on Kvyat at the start of the 2016 season. The Russian driver had poor performances in his first two qualifying sessions in Australia and Bahrain, and despite his podium finish in China, his collision with Sebastian Vettel in Sochi put an end to his season with Red Bull. Only 4 Grand Prix and he was already demoted back to Toro Rosso. Red Bull, ruthless.

Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon

At the end of a competitive season with Toro Rosso in 2018, Red Bull called upon Pierre Gasly to replace the departing Daniel Ricciardo, who was heading to Renault. Once again, Red Bull was giving a chance to a young driver, just as they had done with Max Verstappen in 2016. But would the outcome be the same?

The 2019 season at Red Bull got off to a very bad start, even before the first Grand Prix. A major crash during winter testing in Barcelona had already shaken the confidence of the Frenchman. His first half of the season was difficult, as he struggled to match the performance of Max Verstappen, who continued to dominate his French teammate. By mid-season, Gasly’s best result with the RB15 was a 4th place finish. The pressure exerted by Red Bull was very strong, perhaps too much. It didn’t take much more for Red Bull to replace Pierre Gasly during the summer break. Alex Albon took the Frenchman’s seat, while Gasly was demoted to Toro Rosso. It was a huge blow for the Frenchman, who also suffered the loss of his friend Anthoine Hubert at Spa a few days later. His redemption or his vengeance, call it what you will, came at Monza in 2020 where, behind the wheel of the AlphaTauri, he secured his first career victory. An example of success despite the pressure from the Red Bull behemoth, which nevertheless remains ruthless with its young drivers.

Nyck de Vries is not an isolated case, many have faced the demand of Red Bull and paid the price for it. However, there is no rebound for de Vries elsewhere. Unlike Kvyat and Gasly, Nyck de Vries does not find himself back in a Formula 1 seat. The Dutchman is officially out of the game. Red Bull has no patience and wants to see the performance of its young drivers right away. There is no margin. Nyck de Vries lasted for 10 Grand Prix races, more than Kvyat who competed in 4 races and less than Gasly who resisted for 12 Grand Prix races. The Dutchman says goodbye to Formula 1, as Red Bull has not shown him any mercy.