Mercedes Driver, Once Backed by Toto Wolff, in Talks With His Bitter Red Bull F1 Rival Helmut Marko

Nyck de Vries made his stunning F1 debut at the Italian Grand Prix this season. In doing so, he has become the talk of the town. With many potential teams eyeing the young driver, AlphaTauri and Red Bull appear to be no exception.

Starting eighth on the grid, Nyck de Vries scored two championship points for Williams, after finishing ninth at Monza.

Nyck de Vries in talks with Red Bull’s AlphaTauri

Formula 1 had always been the dream for Nyck de Vries. After winning the 2019 Formula 2 Championship and the Formula E championship last year with Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team, de Vries had been itching to get on the F1 paddock.

Meanwhile, he is a reserve driver for Mercedes, where Toto Wolff had noticed the young driver’s potential before. However, Wolff could not give de Vries his break into F1.

“I can’t really help him,” said Toto Wolff, after De Vries drove in FP1 for the Silver Arrows at the French Grand Prix in July.

Toto Wolff had also praised de Vries’ performance at Monza, but perhaps he did not expect the Dutchman to turn to one of his rivals soon after.

As doors opened for de Vries, he was reported to have been in talks with Helmut Marko, advisor to Red Bull and AlphaTauri.

“As the media had noticed yesterday, I went to Austria to meet Helmut Marko. Those are the facts,” said Nyck de Vries, when questioned about it.

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As of now, there is a possibility de Vries might end up racing for AlphaTauri, replacing Pierre Gasly, who seems to be Alpine bound.

What else lies in store for the Formula E World Champion?

Red Bull’s AlphaTauri is not the only team eyeing the talk of the town that is Nyck de Vries.

For one, Williams is also considering de Vries, after he earned them two championship points at Monza.

“I have been in talks with Williams for a long time and I was also able to make my debut there last weekend. That would be a logical step,” said de Vries.

The other option would be Alpine, for whom de Vries will be testing in Budapest soon.

“Alpine I have been in contact with since July, and I will test for them in Budapest next week. I will fly there on Monday.”

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But Lady Luck smiling down on Nyck de Vries does not make him complacent in the least. As he admits, “I don’t know if I’m in such a luxurious situation that I can choose. It’s mostly out of my control. Wherever I can get a permanent place, I would be very happy with that.” (translated using Google translate)

It is refreshing to see such humility in someone who is clearly going to be a rising star that burns bright. Wherever de Vries does end up, one can only expect great things from him.