Red Bull boss Helmut Marko has issued a response to his team’s policy for young drivers. The 76-year-old claimed ‘95 percent’ of drivers that pass through the ranks ‘earn more than they normally would’.
The Milton-Keynes based team have produced some talented drivers over the years, especially Max Verstappen who is reigning Formula 1 world champion. Not all drivers are so fortunate however, which has led to the criticism, but Marko deems it unjust.
He claims they provide their drivers with opportunities to drive at a high level, even if that does not occur in F1. “We train drivers for Formula 1. We were the first to decide on this. Others followed our example, but they didn't do it on the same scale,” the Austrian said.
"But as soon as we get rid of the drivers, we are constantly criticised.” While referring to the financial benefits for the young Red Bull drivers, he added: “I do not agree with these criticisms. 95% of the drivers who grow in our program and compete in DTM, GT and Formula E earn much more than they normally would."
Marko also pointed out one of the key benefits of the Red Bull programme, which helps drivers get into the sport early, prolonging their careers in the process. “Sometimes they have more than 15 years of career in the sport they love,” he continued “It's our young driver program that laid the foundation for that.”
Verstappen is enjoying a fruitful season so far, after recovering from two DNF’s at the start of the campaign to now lead the drivers standings by 80 points with eight victories. Red Bull are 97 points clear of Ferrari in the constructor's battle, with the Mercedes pair of Sir Lewis Hamilton and George Russell a further 30 back.
Despite his healthy lead, Marko has warned the Dutchman and Red Bull as a whole cannot afford to be complacent with Ferrari still lurking and Mercedes making a resurgence.
“That is not our goal and it would be extremely risky, we saw that last year when we then suddenly only managed second places,” added Marko.
“We still have to win three or four races if the balance of power remains like this, if Mercedes can still race for wins on their own, that would be rather better for us and worse for Ferrari, because Ferrari have to score optimally to have a chance.”
