Red Bull F1 chief SLAMS Audi driver lineup 'decision'

Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko has hit out at the 'incomprehensible' driver lineup decision that has reportedly been made by Audi.

The current Sauber-owned Stake F1 team are set to become Audi in 2026, with the German car manufacturer making its first forays as an F1 works team.

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2024 has seen the Hinwil-based outfit struggle at the back of the grid for most of the year, with neither Zhou Guanyu nor Valtteri Bottas managing to pick up a single point as of yet.

With just six races remaining, the team will do well to lift themselves off the bottom of the constructors' championship standings, but a new dawn is set to begin in the next couple of seasons.

Audi make driver lineup decision

2025 will see the team bring in the in-form Nico Hulkenberg as they look to become a serious podium-challenging entity before the introduction of Audi.

What's more, former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has joined the team as chief technical officer, and Red Bull sporting director Jonathan Wheatley will become their team principal in 2026.

Last week, it was reported that alongside Hulkenberg, Sauber/Audi had decided upon their second driver to complete their lineup.

Bild suggested that Zhou Guanyu would be sacked, and that Bottas would be kept on alongside Hulkenberg, despite the team having been linked with young talents including Franco Colapinto, Mick Schumacher and Gabriel Bortoleto.

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Is Mick Schumacher's F1 career over?

Now, Marko has slammed Audi for not taking a chance on a young driver to fill their second seat, with Schumacher now facing a third successive season outside of F1. He believes that the young driver's F1 career could now be 'over'.

"I think the Audi car will certainly not be a winning car next year. That means there would have been no pressure on either Audi or the driver," Marko told Sport.de. "It would be a good comparison with Nico Hulkenberg.

"I don't know exactly, but if the situation is really that Valtteri Bottas gets the chance, then the whole thing is even more incomprehensible to me.

"I think if Schumacher doesn't get this seat, then his Formula 1 career will be over," the 81-year-old continued.

"Then he should concentrate on the long-distance races, where he was very successful, and do that.

"If he stays in motorsport, then he has to find something that he enjoys, but where he also has a chance of winning."

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