Rumor: De Vries will get the axe if he does not improve (3rd Update)

Helmut Marko confirms that Ayumu Iwasa and Liam Lawson are the two candidates that could replace De Vries at AlphaTauri.

“We’ve given Nyck the yellow card, but not yet the red.”

This rumor is upgraded back to ‘speculation’ today.

(GMM) Daniel Ricciardo could be on the cusp of a sensational return to the Formula 1 grid.

Multiple authoritative media sources, including the major German newspaper Bild, report that Dutch rookie Nyck de Vries is already at risk of losing his new full-time seat at Alpha Tauri.

Other reports suggest 28-year-old de Vries could be ousted as soon as Imola, and replaced either by Red Bull reserve Ricciardo or the much-younger Liam Lawson, who is currently racing Super Formula in Japan.

Ricciardo, 33, has reportedly already had a seat fitting in Faenza, while other sources believe de Vries has at least been given three more races to improve.

“The performance has been disappointing so far,” an unnamed Red Bull source is quoted by the Dutch publication Formule 1 in reference to de Vries.

“If (Helmut) Marko thinks someone else can do better, he won’t fail to give them a chance.”

Some believe Ricciardo is actually less likely than 21-year-old New Zealander Lawson of potential securing de Vries’ seat, although Ricciardo is gearing up to test Red Bull’s 2023 car in the post-British GP Pirelli tire test.

“There could perhaps be another one after Monza in September,” Italy’s Autosprint quotes Ricciardo as saying.

As for top Red Bull official Marko, he is ruling out a scenario in which Ricciardo could replace Sergio Perez to become Max Verstappen’s teammate in 2024.

“Checo signed a two-year contract and that also includes 2024,” Marko told RTL.

“With the performance that he delivers, there’s nothing to be said against him – on the contrary,” added the 80-year-old Austrian.

“He also has an incredible following in Mexico and other parts of South America.”

This rumor is downgraded to ‘false.’  As we stated below – we doubted this rumor was valid, given Ricciardo has yet to test the RB-19 to prove he is not washed up.

Daniel Ricciardo will not be replacing Nyck De Vries at AlphaTauri.

Liam Lawson  is understood to be the first choice for Red Bull if they have to make a change.

Daniel Ricciardo’s recent visit to AlphaTauri’s factory in Italy for a seat fitting has fuelled rumors that he could be set to replace Nyck de Vries.

Helmut Marko has reportedly set an ultimatum to Nyck de Vries.

If the Dutchman does not improve his performance in the next 3 GPs (Imola, Monaco and Barcelona), he could already be replaced by Daniel Ricciardo for the rest of the season.

Ricciardo is set to test the Red Bull RB19 at Silverstone during a tire test after the British GP, after rediscovering his form on the Red Bull simulator.  Would he be ready to replace de Vries before proving himself at the Silverstone test?

AlphaTauri boss Franz Tost says it is unfair to not expect a rookie to make rookie mistakes.

“As I always say, there is a learning process and a crash period because, if the drivers don’t crash, they don’t know the limit,” he said.

“This is a credit you must give them, otherwise it doesn’t work. And there was no driver not crashing. I remember with Sebastian [Vettel] in the first races, he came back on the first lap most often without the front nose. That’s part of the game.”