Helmut Marko has defended the choice to drop Daniel Ricciardo for Liam Lawson for the remaining six races of the season.
With Christian Horner having been prepared to offer the Australian the remainder of the 12 months, it was clearly the controversial Austrian who needed Ricciardo out. Certainly, Horner has revealed that Marko needed to drop the Australian driver as early as Barcelona.
As criticism of the transfer continues, Marko has defended the choice.
He was given a second likelihood that nobody else would have given him,” he instructed SpeedWeek. “And that was beneath the premise {that a} return to Pink Bull Racing was attainable if he carried out properly sufficient.
“The required efficiency solely got here twice,” insisted the Austrian, “as soon as with a fourth place within the Miami Dash this 12 months and final 12 months in Mexico. In any other case the pace was not there, and the consistency was not there both.
“The entire efficiency that might have justified a promotion to Pink Bull was lacking,” he added. “However that was the entire level of the entire thing.”
Removed from profitable promotion again to Pink Bull, Ricciardo was unable to maintain his seat at RB, out-qualified 12 – 6 by his teammate, Yuki Tsunoda, who has additionally scored (10) extra factors this season and had extra factors finishes (8 – 4).
“If we knew why the efficiency was not so good as it ought to be, we’d have finished all the pieces we may to alter that,” stated Marko, although each drivers have clearly struggled with the automobile this season.
“However the identical killer intuition was merely now not evident. He was well-known for his uncompromising overtaking and braking on the final level. However that was now not the case both.”
Although he might not have a drive, the organisers of the forthcoming United States Grand Prix on the Circuit of the Americas need Ricciardo to attend the occasion as a result of his reputation with followers.
“Daniel, could possibly have simply as huge of an affect out of the automobile as he has in it at our at our grand prix,” stated chairman, Bobby Epstein. “I am undecided that essentially persons are shopping for tickets to return see him race if he isn’t in a aggressive automobile, proper? So if you happen to’re coming as a result of he is a part of the F1 neighborhood, I believe he can nonetheless be a part of the F1 neighborhood in a fairly significant means.
“He is actually, actually beloved in Texas, and I believe he likes it right here,” Epstein continued. “So I might hope that he makes himself obtainable extra to the followers than he would in any other case be if he had an obligation within the automobile. I hope he is nonetheless coming right here, as a result of we received lots of people that might like to shake his hand or get his autograph or take an image. Simply see him round city. We’ll preserve him busy.”
For these of a sure classic, suppose Pete Aron turning up for the French GP (?) as a TV commentator after being sacked by Jordan-BRM following his involvement in teammate Scott Stoddard’s horrific crash in Monaco. The American racer was subsequently given a drive by Japan’s Namura group and went on to win the title following a down-to-the-wire battle with the Briton.
