Dan Ticktum says he agrees with Helmut Marko and Red Bull‘s ruthlessness in Formula 1 after Nyck de Vries was dropped by AlphaTauri ahead of the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix.
De Vries joined AlphaTauri at the start of 2023 following his impressive one-off appearance for Williams at the 2022 Italian GP but struggled this year and was one of two drivers yet to score a point ahead of Budapest.
Ticktum, who is racing for Nio in Formula E, was part of the Red Bull junior team between 2017 and 2019.
“I haven’t seen many decisions like that from Helmut for a little while, so I thought potentially he’s mellowed in his old age!” Ticktum exclusively told Total-Motorsport.com.
“But he’s definitely still got it. He’s still got the ruthlessness. I get it from his side. A team and a company as big as Red Bull, they can’t afford to wait for someone to get up to speed. They need someone to perform straightaway.
“Unfortunately, I think the AlphaTauri was obviously a difficult car to drive and Nyck struggled a little bit, so I understand why he’s been kicked out, albeit harsh.
“Maybe sometimes it’s a bit far but I think on the whole I actually agree with a lot of the decisions Helmut makes.
“I can potentially have bad blood with him with how I was dropped, but I think overall, he just doesn’t have time to delve into the details because he’s so busy.
“If the results aren’t there for whatever reason, they just go, ‘right we will get another driver. There are plenty of other good drivers out there’. He doesn’t bother so much with the detail, so I kind of get it to be honest.”
De Vries is a fantastic driver
Antonio Felix da Costa is another driver who has been part of the Red Bull stable, having tested multiple F1 cars, although never got a seat on the grid.
Da Costa pointed out he has not been at his best in Formula E this season, after changing teams from DS Techeetah to Porsche, so feels for De Vries, who changed series completely.
“It is harsh but we know how they [Red Bull] operate,” said Da Costa. “It is what it is. I changed teams myself [in Formula E] this year and it took me a while to get up to speed with everything, and that’s not even changing series, that’s just changing teams.
“I can only imagine how hard it must be to get those last two, three or four tenths and dominate the car in that area. So I really sympathise with Nyck and what he has to go through. I don’t think the car was at its best either this year, that team has been struggling a little bit.
“Obviously I’m not there and don’t know what happened. I can only say Nyck is a fantastic driver. You don’t win Formula E and Formula 2 and not no how to drive. At the same time, we don’t need to sorry for him. He’s an awesome guy and I’m sure he will land a new seat somewhere.”
De Vries has been through hell in 2023
Stoffel Vandoorne was De Vries teammate at Mercedes in Formula E between 2020 and 2022. De Vries became world champion in 2021, albeit in an unusual season where he only scored 99 points from 15 races.
But, Vandoorne won the title in the next season while De Vries was ninth in a more conventional season and the Belgian wouldn’t be surprised if his former teammate will be back in Formula E.
“It’s obviously very unfortunate for Nyck. You think about last year, he was kind of riding a honeymoon let’s say,” said Vandoorne. “The whole of this year he’s been kind of living through hell. Unfortunately, that’s how F1 sometimes goes.
“If you are there at the right time, the right environment, it can suddenly push you up. Sometimes it just doesn’t fall your way and it goes the other way. He’s still a good driver. He will find his feet and maybe he will be back here at some point.”
