Dr. Helmut Marko says it would be "incomprehensible" if Audi really does choose to retain Valtteri Bottas for 2025.
Red Bull's famous F1 consultant, a known advocate for young talent, has successfully pushed for 22-year-old rookie Liam Lawson to replace Daniel Ricciardo, 35, at RB.
"Oliver Bearman and especially Franco Colapinto have shown this year that youngsters are ready for the step up and that the old philosophy of some team bosses that you can only promote drivers to a top team with three or four years of experience is outdated," Marko told Speed Week.
"There is a certain risk, but it is manageable and it is worth it."
Both Colapinto, 21, and Gabriel Bortoleto, the even younger current F2 series leader, were recent contenders for the second Audi-owned Sauber seat alongside Nico Hulkenberg for 2025.
Marko also believes Mick Schumacher "absolutely deserves" another chance in Formula 1 after his troubled time at Haas.
"He was not treated fairly by Netflix superstar Gunther Steiner," the 81-year-old insists. "But behind the scenes, you only hear good things about him."
Nevertheless, it seems that Audi is leaning toward retaining the more experienced Bottas, a decision Marko struggles to understand.
"Schumacher would have been an almost risk-free choice," he told German broadcasters RTL and ntv. "If his performance is not right, you can always make a substitution for 2026."
"But the Audi car will certainly not be a winning car next year," Marko added. "That means there would have been no pressure on either Audi or the driver."
At the most recent Grand Prix in Singapore, multiple sources indicated that Bottas, 34, has secured at least a one-year extension with Sauber.
"I don't know exactly," Marko responded, "but if the situation really is that Bottas gets the chance, then the whole thing is even more incomprehensible to me."
Marko also warned that if Schumacher doesn't return to the grid in 2025, his Formula 1 career will almost certainly "be over".
"In that case, he should concentrate on the endurance races, where he was already successful, and do that."
