Helmut Marko retrains his drivers

The words are harsh, but Doctor Helmut Marko is not in the habit of sparing his flock. “Only three drivers have been convincing so far: Daniel Ricciardo, leader of the F3 British, Jean-Éric Vergne, performing well in Eurocup FR 2.0 and in Formula Renault 2.0 West European Cup and Jaime Alguersuari, who recently won his first race in the FR 3.5 Series. Everyone else is clearly below our expectations, therefore they are under pressure and need to perform well for the rest of the season. »

Everything is going well in the best of all possible worlds for Daniel Ricciardo, Jean-Éric Vergne and Jaime Alguersuari. For the Spaniard, the mission is accomplished. Integrated into Red Bull Junior Team at the end of 2005, promoted to Toro Rosso A few weeks ago, he became the sixth Red Bull Junior Team driver to complete the tumultuous stages leading to the Formula 1. Christian Klien showed the way in 2004. The Austrian was then followed at the highest level by Scott Speed ​​and Vitantonio Luizzi the following year. It is then Sebastian Vettel who joined the ranks of Toro Rosso in 2007 to become the first Red Bull Junior Team driver to win a Grand Prix in 2008. Finally in 2009, Sébastien Buemi then Jaime Alguersuari extend the list.

But the list of pilots abandoned along the way is much longer. Who today remembers Reinhard Kofler, the first Red Bull Junior Team driver to win a title? It was in 2001 in Formula BMW ADAC! More recently, Tom Dillman, Jean-Karl Vernay, Filipe Albuquerque and Stefano Coletti were also thanked.

The future of Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Éric Vergne thus seems guaranteed, because it is good to remember that when a driver enters the Red Bull fold, his entire season is financed by the Austrian firm. In return, it is Helmut Marko who decides the category and the team where the driver will compete. And when a pilot gives complete satisfaction, Doctor Marko knows how to be generous. Thus, Daniel Ricciardo completed his first two races in Formula Renault 3.5 Series at Tech 1 Racing, replacing Brendon Hartley. The Australian should be there again at the end of the season? if all goes well in British F3!

On the other hand, when things are not going well, the ax can quickly fall, without any restraint. Mikhail Aleshin (F2), Mirko Bortolotti (F2), Robert Wickens (F2), Daniel Juncadella (Formula BMW), Mika Mäki (F3 Euro Series) and even Brendon Hartley (F3 Euro Series), although praised a few months ago, can so worry. They have a few races left to regain the confidence of Helmut Marko, the sole master on board.

These pilots will have to hang on to stay in the fold, because year after year the lucky ones are fewer and fewer in number. Apart from the launch year in 2001, when seven drivers defended the colors of Red Bull, the year 2009, with nine drivers, is the least crowded. “Quality comes before quantity” defends the Red Bull Junior Team, but it already seems a long time ago when twenty drivers representing eleven nationalities were active on European circuits? It was 2004, the year Sebastian Vettel won in Formula BMW ADAC and the year Scott Speed ​​won the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup and Formula Renault 2.0 North European Cup titles. Ironically, in 2007 Scott Speed ​​was fired by Toro Rosso and replaced by Sebastian Vettel. The latter is now fighting for the F1 title while the American has found refuge in Nascar, always with a big red bull on his mount.

How many Red Bul Junior Team drivers in 2010? After Jaime Alguersuari, who will be the next driver in this sector to enter F1? Where will Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Éric Vergne play next season? Only Helmut Marko can answer these questions.

Since 2001, the Red Bull Junior Team can, however, boast 14 titles, 209 victories and 205 pole positions. This remains the most effective training method today.