Marko held off Schumacher's arrival: 'He has a problem with Mick'

Ralf Schumacher reveals that Mick Schumacher was a contender for the seat at AlphaTauri in 2023. Franz Tost wanted the German in his team, but according to Ralf, Helmut Marko deliberately kept the door closed to Schumacher.

The arrival of De Vries

With Pierre Gasly's departure to Alpine, AlphaTauri had to look for a new driver for 2023. The Italian team wanted a driver with experience as a benchmark for Yuki Tsunoda. Red Bull talents Liam Lawson, Ayumu Iwasa and Isack Hadjar were still deemed too light for this. Nyck de Vries impressed with his debut for Williams at Monza, after which Marko struck.

De Vries seemed a suitable candidate given his performance in the Italian Grand Prix, but with two years of F1 experience, Schumacher would also have been an interesting option for Red Bull Racing's sister team. Tost has known Ralf for much longer. The two worked together back in 1993 and many more times over the years. Ralf was therefore told by AlphaTauri's team boss that he would love to have his nephew in the car.

Marko has a problem with Schumacher

However, as AlphaTauri's team boss, Tost is not in charge of his team's line-up, that is up to Marko, who chose De Vries. ''Helmut Marko has a problem with the Schumacher name and it seems he also has a problem with Mick, otherwise I cannot explain why this has not worked out well,'' Ralf told Formel1.de.

According to the former F1 driver, AlphaTauri could have done a good business in the German market by attracting Mick, and the experience of Michael Schumacher 's son also weighs heavily. Whereas De Vries still has to learn everything in F1, Schumacher already has two years of experience at Haas under his belt. It is precisely those years that a driver needs, according to Tost.

Future of AlphaTauri

Ralf Schumacher is therefore uncomprehending about AlphaTauri's choice, but also about the way Nyck de Vries is now being talked about. Although the German believes his nephew would have been a better candidate for the Faenza-based team, De Vries must be given time as a rookie. The fact that Marko is already stepping up the pressure is incomprehensible, according to Schumacher. ''It is surprising that precisely Marko is now causing this unrest,'' said the six-time Grand Prix winner.

Indeed, the pressure is full on De Vries, who has yet to impress in his first race weekends for AlphaTauri. Tsunoda is clearly bossing him and Marko has signalled that De Vries needs to perform better. Daniel Ricciardo is said to be warming up in the background, while Liam Lawson and Ayumu Iwasa will also be hoping for a chance.