Dr Helmut Marko appears to be at odds with Red Bull's recent driver management choices.
The 81-year-old Austrian, renowned in the Formula 1 paddock for his focus on driver selection, has hinted at discord over last year's decision to extend Sergio Perez's contract—a move that ultimately cost Red Bull millions to terminate. "That wasn't my decision," Marko told Osterreich newspaper. "I didn't choose Perez, Christian (Horner) did."
He believes Nico Hulkenberg would have been a wiser choice. "He is a great guy, that's very clear," said Marko. "However, he signed the contract with Audi very early last season, when Perez was still high in the world championship. That's why it was no longer an option."
Liam Lawson stepped in as Perez's 2025 replacement, but his underwhelming early outings prompted Red Bull to swiftly replace him with Yuki Tsunoda. "Surprisingly, he (Marko) didn't call me yet," the compact Japanese driver noted at Suzuka. "Very unusual.
"I can't wait to see him and see how he's going to react to me."
Tsunoda showed promising pace near Max Verstappen's in initial Suzuka practice, buoying Marko's outlook. "Yuki knows the track inside and out," he told sport.de. "He's gotten used to the car on the simulator."
Tsunoda even influenced the RB21's setup, suggesting adjustments that Verstappen adopted. "After that, Max tried that setup in the simulator, and he said it felt good," he said. "I heard that Max will start the practice session with a setup closer to mine."
Amid persistent speculation of internal strife at Red Bull, rumours swirl that Verstappen might invoke a performance-based clause to depart. "We have to make the RB21 more competitive," Marko told RTL. "But as it stands now, there are no clauses in force."
Some interpret Verstappen's recent remarks as hints of a 2026 move to Aston Martin, reuniting with Honda and Adrian Newey. "You're putting words in my mouth now," the Dutchman told a Japanese journalist on Thursday.
When pressed on whether Verstappen's management is engaging with teams like Mercedes, Marko responded: "At the moment I hope that this is certainly not the case.
"We want to win that fifth title, and the entire team is focused on this."
Verstappen has openly disagreed with Lawson's swift exit. "I've given my opinion," said the 27-year-old, "but what they do with my opinions is not my decision.
"The main problem is that the car isn't good enough. We need to make it more driveable, then every driver in the other car can handle it."
