Helmut Marko has suggested that Liam Lawson’s management was behind the claim that Daniel Ricciardo would be dropped in favour of the kiwi.
As the Australian’s poor start to the season continued, there were media reports that unless things improved he would be dropped ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, in favour of reserve driver Liam Lawson who replaced him at five races last year following his crash in practice for the Dutch Grand Prix, Ricciardo’s third outing for AlphaTauri after being brought in to replace Nyck de Vries.
Writing in Speedweek, Helmut Marko suggests that the rumour regarding Ricciardo’s sacking came from Lawson’s management.
“The rumours that Ricciardo will be replaced by Liam Lawson at Imola are nonsense,” writes the Austrian. “Liam’s manager from New Zealand was there, apparently he has certain dreams and they are made known through some media, including from New Zealand.
“Nothing at all is planned in Imola,” insists the Austrian. “But of course we will look at this in the future.”
Turning his attention to Ricciardo, who has shown improved form over the last couple of race weekends, not least claiming fourth in the Miami Shootout and going on to successfully defend the position in the sprint, Marko writes: “Daniel delivered a remarkable performance, fourth place was a sensation and he set the fastest time in sector three.
“This sector consists mainly of slow corners,” he adds. “If you drive precisely there, you will gain an incredible amount of time. And if you make a mistake, it’s doubly punishing because of the slow speed.”
