A super hard task master, Red Bull juniors who don’t make the cut on the way up the racing ladder are quickly dropped.
And even those who make it all the way to Formula 1 race wins are not immune to criticism.
In a fascinating interview that Marko has given with in-house publication the Red Bulletin ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix, the Austrian has offered his opinions on those who have been or are part of the Red Bull stable.
And while some of his graduates escape criticism – with Max Verstappen earning nothing but praise – there are a few harsh words for others.
Here are some of the highlights…
DANIEL RICCIARDO – “Lacking consistency”
Daniel Ricciardo enjoyed race-winning success alongside Sebastian Vettel and Verstappen at Red Bull, but Marko reckons he could not keep up the form needed all the time.
“In his first year at Red Bull, he beat Vettel by three wins to nil,” he said. “Max coming on the scene was a crunch point in his career.
“Rather than taking up the fight, he wanted to keep his distance. And you know what happened next. That’s too bad.
“He was always nice to work with. His speed is comparable to that of Max, but he’s just lacking that ultimate consistency.”
SEBASTIAN VETTEL – ‘A very, very analytical worker’
Marko believes that four-time champion Sebastian Vettel was able to beat long-time Red Bull teammate Mark Webber thanks to his hard work and analytical talent.
“He made ultimate use of all technical possibilities,” said Marko. “This was also why he ultimately had the upper hand over a talented Mark Webber.”
CARLOS SAINZ – “Toxic” Verstappen relationship
Carlos Sainz is Formula 1’s latest winner, and Marko was impressed by the pace he showed at the start of his career.
He reckoned Sainz was quicker in fast corners than Vettel – but says things turned sour when he was twinned with Verstappen at Toro Rosso from 2015.
“It was his bad luck to get Max as a teammate,” he said. “The atmosphere between the two at Toro Rosso was quite toxic. In the setup we had at the time, I couldn’t see a way of keeping him with us and so he moved to Renault, McLaren and then on to Ferrari.”
ALEX ALBON – “Too nice”
Albon may race for Williams but he maintains close-ties to Red Bull, having driven for the main team and Toro Rosso.
Marko reckons Albon’s career trajectory was changed by incidents with Lewis Hamilton at Brazil in 2019 and Austria in 2020 – when good results slipped from his grasp. He also…
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