F1: Promising juniors in short supply

(GMM) There is a shortage of really promising talents coming up the ranks towards Formula 1.

That is the view of Jack Plooij, the well-known presenter for Dutch broadcaster Ziggo Sport, who noted that Red Bull junior Juri Vips (shown above) failed to shine on Friday.

Vips, 21, is the cream of Red Bull’s notorious driver program, but in Sergio Perez’s car in Friday practice in Barcelona, he was a staggering 4.3 seconds off the pace and dead last.

Dead last and out to lunch: Juri Vips of Estonia driving the (36) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB18 on track during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Spain at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on May 20, 2022 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

For comparison, another practice rookie – Formula E champion Nyck de Vries – was well over a second faster than Vips in the much less competitive Williams.

“I believe that Red Bull doesn’t have such good young drivers anymore,” Plooij said.

Former F1 driver Robert Doornbos added: “I agree.”

Another Ziggo Sport pundit, Renger van der Zande, also commented: “It’s true – I think there are very few juniors who would do well in Formula 1 at all.

“Even if you look at Formula 2, Mick Schumacher and Mazepin were race winners but they’re not really in it in Formula 1, so it is a bad moment in that regard,” he said.