Marko doesn't regret Sainz Red Bull F1 exit as "he is no Verstappen"
Helmut Marko says he does not regret letting Carlos Sainz Jr leave the Red Bull Formula 1 team's stable, because he does not rate Sainz as highly as Max Verstappen
Sainz was backed by Red Bull throughout his junior career, and spent just under three seasons racing for its junior outfit Toro Rosso, and was then loaned to Renault at the end of 2017 and for the following campaign.
Renault opted against retaining the on-loan Sainz for 2019, and Red Bull's decision to promote Pierre Gasly instead of Sainz for the seat vacated by Daniel Ricciardo at the main team led to Sainz being released to join McLaren.
But while Gasly struggled to assert himself at Red Bull and was demoted back to Toro Rosso mid-season, Sainz flourished at McLaren, finishing the 2019 campaign sixth in the drivers' championship.
Asked whether he regretted that Sainz was allowed to leave, Red Bull motorsport advisor Marko told Autosport: "No.
"Sainz was comforted with one Max Verstappen [at Toro Rosso], and later we had to choose which one of the two to promote [to the main team in 2016].
"And when you get right down to it - Carlos is quick, we would not have signed him otherwise, but he is no Verstappen.
"We helped Carlos with his career and we didn't have to let him go. But we allowed the move to Renault and then to McLaren.
"We have a good relationship, but at that moment there was a Verstappen there, and there's a [performance] difference between the two."
Marko has previously been critical of the role Sainz's father, World Rally and Dakar champion Carlos Sr, played in his son becoming unsettled at Toro Rosso in 2017.
But asked whether the factor Sainz's 'political' father had played a part in the decision to release him, Marko said: "I wouldn't say he has a political father, rather one of those motorsport fathers who doesn't look at it objectively - which is understandable - and just always does what he thinks is best for his son.
"But it's not an isolated case, and by far not the worst."
Latest revision to proposed Miami F1 circuit avoids public roads
An F1 world without Schumacher or Hamilton
Double F1 race winner Jean Pierre Jabouille has died
Former French Formula 1 driver Jean-Pierre Jabouille has died on Thursday at age 80, French media have reported.
IMSA champion Jarvis to contest full ELMS season with United Autosports
Reigning IMSA Sportscar Championship title-winner Oliver Jarvis will contest the European Le Mans Series with United Autosports alongside Formula 2 convert Marino Sato, in addition to the World Endurance Championship.
20 years on: Porsche’s 911 GT Daytona 24 Hours giant-killing relived
IMSA’s new GTP class for LMDh cars had a more auspicious debut last weekend than the Daytona Prototypes that arrived in 2003. Back then, they were humbled by a GT Porsche 911, which won the Floridian sportscar classic by nine laps.
Entries open for the 2023 Williams Autosport Engineer of the Future Award story
Entries have opened for the 2023 Williams Autosport Engineer of the Future Award, with budding motorsport engineers invited to apply for the revamped prize.
Assessing Hamilton's remarkable decade as a Mercedes F1 driver
Many doubted Lewis Hamilton’s move from McLaren to Mercedes for the 2013 Formula 1 season. But the journey he’s been on since has taken the Briton to new heights - and to a further six world championship titles
Why new look Haas is a litmus test for Formula 1’s new era
OPINION: With teams outside the top three having struggled in Formula 1 in recent seasons, the rules changes introduced in 2022 should have more of an impact this season. How well Haas does, as the poster child for the kind of team that F1 wanted to be able to challenge at the front, is crucial
The Mercedes F1 pressure changes under 10 years of Toto Wolff
OPINION: Although the central building blocks for Mercedes’ recent, long-lasting Formula 1 success were installed before he joined the team, Toto Wolff has been instrumental in ensuring it maximised its finally-realised potential after years of underachievement. The 10-year anniversary of Wolff joining Mercedes marks the perfect time to assess his work
The all-French F1 partnership that Ocon and Gasly hope to emulate
Alpine’s signing of Pierre Gasly alongside Esteban Ocon revives memories of a famous all-French line-up, albeit in the red of Ferrari, for BEN EDWARDS. Can the former AlphaTauri man's arrival help the French team on its path back to winning ways in a tribute act to the Prancing Horse's title-winning 1983?
How do the best races of F1 2022 stack up to 2021?
OPINION: A system to score all the grands prix from the past two seasons produces some interesting results and sets a standard that 2023 should surely exceed
Who were the fastest drivers in F1 2022?
Who was the fastest driver in 2022? Everyone has an opinion, but what does the stopwatch say? Obviously, differing car performance has an effect on ultimate laptime – but it’s the relative speed of each car/driver package that’s fascinating and enlightening says ALEX KALINAUCKAS
Why F1's nearly man is refreshed and ready for his return
He has more starts without a podium than anyone else in Formula 1 world championship history, but Nico Hulkenberg is back for one more shot with Haas. After spending three years on the sidelines, the revitalised German is aiming to prove to his new team what the F1 grid has been missing
The potential-laden F1 car that Ferrari neglected
The late Mauro Forghieri played a key role in Ferrari’s mid-1960s turnaround, says STUART CODLING, and his pretty, intricate 1512 was among the most evocative cars of the 1.5-litre era. But a victim of priorities as Formula 1 was deemed less lucrative than success in sportscars, its true potential was never seen in period
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.