Why Red Bull’s patience wore even thinner with de Vries amid Ricciardo’s rebuild

Any other team ejecting its rookie driver after less than half a season would have caused a serious stir in Formula 1.

But the fact that de Vries’ removal from Red Bull’s second team AlphaTauri was almost greeted with a sense of inevitability speaks volumes on the company’s – and in particular advisor Helmut Marko’s – notorious lack of patience once one of its drivers fails to deliver.

There is plenty of precedence for Red Bull keeping its youngsters on a short leash.