Nyck de Vries is heading to Barcelona fighting for his career in Formula 1 after a tough start to season saw him deliver a string of pointless and inconsistent performances, far behind his teammate.
After he blew the paddock away at Monza last year, securing points after a last minute call up to fill in for Williams driver Alex Albon, de Vries had joined AlphaTauri with expectations high.
Unfortunately for the Dutchman, he has failed to deliver this year, struggling to keep up with Yuki Tsunoda and suffering a series of costly and avoidable crashes, including two during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend.
Ahead of Monaco, it was reported that de Vries had been shown a yellow card by Red Bull’s management, warning him that he has to step up or risk being sacked at the end of the season.
Want to work in Formula 1? Browse the latest F1 job vacancies
“We though Nyck would immediately challenge Yuki Tsunoda with his experience but that hasn’t happened yet,” Dr Helmut Marko said.
However, after he pulled off a performance on par with Tsunoda around Monaco, Marko was clear that “this is what I want to see from him” going forward.
Despite his stronger showing in Monaco, de Vries only managed to secure P12, continuing his run of pointless finishes, meaning he remains one of only two drivers on the grid to have failed to finish in the top ten this year.
In Barcelona, while the main battle is set to be between Red Bull, Mercedes, Aston Martin and Ferrari, AlphaTauri will be determined to see their drivers fight for the final two points positions, showing they are a consistent midfield player.
READ: Martin Brundle left red-faced after awkward moment with Real Madrid star
“I’m not very up to date with what everyone is saying. But we live in the present, you’re as good as your last race and it’s ultimately all about performance,” de Vries said in Barcelona.
“People make mistakes, I make mistakes, we’re human, we move forward, and this weekend is a new weekend.”
When questioned about whether he had had a subsequent conversation with Marko after the threat over his seat was issued, de Vries coyly claimed that the pair “haven’t seen each other yet.”