25/05/2024
NEWS STORY
Helmut Marko admits to holding talks with Fernando Alonso over 2025 seat, but fears the Spaniard would not have gelled with Max Verstappen.
With the future of Sergio Perez uncertain, and talk of even Max Verstappen jumping ship, it was obvious that the Austrian team would be looking elsewhere, and while the two-time champ might be the 'old man' of the 2024 grid, there is no doubting his talent or commitment.
Having committed his future to Aston Martin, Alonso admitted talking to other teams but refused to name them, however Marko has now revealed that one of them was Red Bull.
"There have been conversations," Marko tells Germany's Formel1.de. "But as I mentioned before, a harmonious work environment is very important to Max and I think that probably would not have been the case with Alonso.
"I think it would be very difficult for a team," he continues. "Alonso would be the oldest world champion on the team, Max the youngest, and they are generations apart. I don't think Alonso does sim racing or gets into a simulator on a plane right after a grand prix.
"They are two opposite personalities," he adds, "both very good drivers and also personalities. Neither of them are very modest. And it would be very, very difficult for a team to take that in a positive direction."
While Alonso might no longer be the perfect fit for Red Bull, Marko admits that when Red Bull first entered the sport it had held talks with the Spaniard.
"You can't achieve everything in life, but it clearly depends on the personality of the driver, and once again I take my hat off to him for the incredible performance he continues to offer despite his age," says Marko.
"We were talking to Alonso in the early years of Red Bull Racing. I don't think he thought we were capable of manufacturing cars that could compete to win championships. And that didn't work out."
Meanwhile, after a strong start to the season, over the last couple of race weekends Sergio Perez' form has appeared to take a bit of a dip, asked if he was concerned that the Mexican is facing a downward spiral, Christian Horner said: "No, I don't think so. I think he's driven very well so far this year.
"Obviously, Imola was a tricky qualifying or a tricky Saturday for him, going back to FP3," he added. "But I think when you look at the drives that he's put in across a variance of circuits this year, he's performing well. So in the fullness of time, we'll work out what we're going to do."
Check out our Saturday gallery from Monaco here.