Toto Wolff speculates over Nyck de Vries axe as Red Bull told they could rue ‘brutal’ move

Nyck de Vries was fired before his first-ever Dutch Grand Prix outing Toto Wolff has warned Red Bull that they could rue the decision to ditch Nyck de Vries so quickly, claiming that the Dutch driver could have been a strong candidate to replace Sergio Perez if given the time to settle into F1. Many were shocked when the news broke that the Dutch driver would be leaving the team so soon after joining, with Red Bull legend and four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel describing the decision to let him go as “brutal” in an interview with ITV. De Vries was signed to the AlphaTauri team to replace the Alpine-bound Pierre Gasly for the 2023 season off the back of his memorable substitute appearance on debut for Williams at the 2022 Italian Grand Prix, in which he out-qualified team-mate Nicholas Latifi and picked up his maiden F1 points. Unfortunately for the Dutchman, that was where the fairytale ended. De Vries was afforded just ten races to prove his talent in the AlphaTauri, in which he struggled to match the pace of team-mate Yuki Tsunoda in what was arguably the slowest car in the field. Off the back of the British Grand Prix in July, Helmut Marko made the decision to oust De Vries from the second AlphaTauri seat, bringing back the experienced Daniel Ricciardo as part of a test run ahead of his hopeful return to the Red Bull team. Speaking to Sky Sports F1 about the dismissal, Wolff explained: ‘Maybe he needed more time. If he had been given the season, who knows? Maybe he would have been a really good candidate for the Red Bull seat too. ‘They wanted, I think, to do some benchmarking with Ricciardo to see if Daniel might be able to take Checo’s seat, and once you’ve made that decision, then of course you’ll fall through the cracks.’ Wolff is well-placed to discuss De Vries’ ability, having worked with the Dutch driver upon his graduation from the F2 series during his time as Mercedes’ test and reserve driver, as well as a Mercedes Formula E driver. SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info Nyck de Vries failed to live up to expectations during his time with AlphaTauri