How Verstappen made the De Vries-AlphaTauri deal possible

Who said that Max Verstappen was only interested in what concerned him personally in motorsport? The double Dutch world champion indeed played the role of detonator in the rapprochement between his compatriot Nyck de Vries and the sister stable of Red Bull Alpha Tauri, with whom the world champion of Formula E 2021 signed for next season.

To understand, we obviously have to go back to the context of the Italian Grand Prix on September 11. Victim of an appendicitis attack, Alex Albon is then forced and forced to leave his seat vacant at Williams. Reserve driver, among others, from the Grove team, Nyck de Vries jumps into the car in free practice 3. He achieves the first sensation of the weekend on Saturday afternoon, dominating his teammate for a day Nicholas latifi…and joining Q2! From 13th initially on the grid, the penalty game will allow him to start from 8th position, and finish 9th, despite almost no rolling in these F1 modern.

A Verstappen-De Vries dinner in Monaco

So obviously, apart from the frustration of Ferrari who railed against the length of time taken by the commissioners to evacuate the car damaged by Daniel Ricciardo stopped in the last five laps of the Grand Prix, the paddock had only one word on its mouth: Nyck de Vries! The 27-year-old young man had just struck hard and forced his destiny. He had his chance…and took it. In the wake of the happy event at Monza, Hendrik de Vries (his real first name) was going to sit at a table with Max Verstappen and gather valuable information regarding the F1 market. “Max and I have a great relationship”, contextualized De Vries. “We are from the same generation. He's a little younger than me, but we grew up karting, we are both Dutch, and his approach to karting with his father (to travel around Europe in a van) was very similar to ours. We live for this sport and we respect each other a lot as drivers. »

Nyck de Vries has signed with AlphaTauri. © Antonin Vincent / DPPI

He pursues. “Even though he's a little younger, it's almost like he acts like my big brother. We had dinner together in Monaco after the Monza race, and we talked about the possibilities and opportunities”. During this princely meal, Max Verstappen made a suggestion to Nyck: Why not make a phone call directly to Helmut Marko to express his interest in joining AlphaTauri? After all, the Faenza team, in full negotiation with Alpine in the file gasly, was looking for a driver providing sporting guarantees to take over from the Frenchman. And with what he had just demonstrated without the slightest experience in the premier category, there was clearly a dynamic to ride on.

A meeting with Helmut Marko in Austria

On the good advice of Max, Nyck de Vries picks up his phone and calls Dr. Marko, who arranges to meet him at the end of the week in Graz, in the calm and peacefulness of Graz, the Styrian capital of Austria. A meal which he detailed with humor at AUTOhebdo.fr the topics of conversation reviewed. “Yes, I was in Graz. We met there. Obviously, as you might expect, we talked about schnitzel, käsespätzle and also very good desserts (laughs)… No, of course, we talked about possible future opportunities. » The interview was fruitful, and the two men emerged with an agreement, conditional on the Dutchman releasing himself from his 2023 commitments in WEC and in Formula E. This is why the announcement of his arrival at AlphaTauri did not occur until several weeks later.

After bringing the Netherlands its first two world titles in F1, it would seem that Max Verstappen contributed to the arrival on the grid of a second Dutch driver! “It’s not like one thing is the key to anything”, still attenuated De Vries. “So far, I’ve been taking care of myself and listening to those around me. Knowledge is very important in this industry. And I think sometimes we see people who hide their game well. It's important to share information to know what's going on. It was definitely that kind of conversation. » Next year, Verstappen and De Vries will be able to continue dining together on the Rock. And this time, they will be able to talk about their respective exploits weekend after weekend! 

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