With Nyck de Vries potentially facing being dropped by AlphaTauri after less than a season, rumours are swirling about who could be lined up to step in and replace him.
Despite coming into his first full season with a lot of expectation after a strong showing at Imola last season, de Vries has disappointed this year, failing to score points for his new team.
Currently one of only two drivers to have not scored points this year, de Vries is under pressure from Red Bull’s management to deliver or risk being axed.
The situation at AlphaTauri has been put in stark contrast by Yuki Tsunoda’s performance, with the Japanese driver delivering incredible consistency through two P10 and three P11 finishes.
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Despite a seat potentially opening up at Red Bull’s junior team, Dr Helmut Marko has claimed that reserve driver Daniel Ricciardo is not being prepped for the seat.
Ricciardo recently had a seat fitting at AlphaTauri sparking rumours he could be ready to step into the car should a change be required.
However, the Australia explained that this was actually just a pre-agreed part of his contract with Red Bull, ensuring he could fulfil reserve duties at AlphaTauri if Tsunoda or de Vries were unable to drive in a weekend.
“Alpha Tauri is Alpha Tauri and Red Bull Racing is Red Bull Racing,” Marko said.
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“Whether you drive in the midfield or whether you drive at the front, that’s a completely different pressure, a completely different atmosphere.
“We know Daniel’s qualities. Then came the Renault era. Then McLaren came along and there was a slump. It wasn’t the Ricciardo we knew.”
Given the possible lack of available seats in competitive teams this year, Ricciardo could be looking at a second consecutive season on the sidelines.