Not Max Verstappen or Charles Leclerc: Red Bull Chief Picks This F1 Driver for ‘Surprise of the Year’

Red Bull are in a league of their own in the current season with a massive lead in both the championships. With the pace Red Bull is progressing at currently, they will be out of touching distance before the season ends. Heading into the summer break with this incredible lead the Red Bull hierarchy is not worrying too much and watching the drama unfold.

The drama was kick-started by the retirement news of Sebastian Vettel, a four-time world champion with Red Bull. Vettel’s retirement lead to a vacancy at Aston Martin, which was quickly filled by Fernando Alonso. Alonso’s announcement caught everyone by surprise, even his current team, Alpine. Aston Martin quickly moved on to the two-time world champion despite his advanced age.

However, Red Bull’s advisor Helmut Marko feels Aston Martin has made a brilliant acquisition and Alonso is still capable.

“He’s (Fernando Alonso) super fast. It’s unbelievable how much racing he delivers, the surprise of the year for me. I even think he’s still capable of victories as a driver. The only question is whether Aston Martin can provide him with the package,” said Marko. (Translated by Google)

It is difficult to disagree with the Red Bull Advisor, as Alonso has been really quick this year. However, due to driver errors and reliability issues of the car, he is lagging behind in the championship. Aside from the P2 start at the Canadian GP being the highlight of his season, the Spaniard has also been showcasing his incredible defending skills in races.

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The aforementioned comments from Marko arose during a discussion of Vettel’s retirement. For Vettel, the Austrian’s assessment was a bit unexpected.

Red Bull advisor understands the reason behind Sebastian Vettel’s retirement

Talking about the retiring German, the former racing driver shared his honest opinion. Reminiscing, he said, “With his meticulousness, Vettel fitted our DNA perfectly, everything worked together perfectly.”

“He has other priorities now, he doesn’t even make it onto the podium with his car. So it is logical that he draws the consequences. If you don’t put your heart into it, nothing goes on,” he continued while discussing Vettel’s decision.

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The Red Bull advisor is an honest man, and his assessment of Alonso and Vettel is quite close to reality. However, it would be interesting to see if Alonso can still win a race or not in the coming seasons.