Daniel Ricciardo has suffered a bit at the hands of Helmut Marko while at Red Bull, but has assured that he retains respect and admiration for the Milton Keynes-based consultant. "It's a very honest relationship"
Helmut Marko is known to be very hard on the drivers at both Red Bull and AlphaTauri (formerly Toro Rosso), and Daniel Ricciardo was no exception. The Australian recalled the years he spent under the Austrian's command and admitted that he had to endure "a lot of mocking" during his seasons at the Milton Keynes-based team.
Now racing for McLaren, Ricciardo built his name in Formula 1 during his years with Red Bull from 2014 to 2017. In four seasons, there were five wins and two third places in the Drivers' World Championship, but the rise of Max Verstappen made the Australian renege on his role as a squire and seek other opportunities, first with Aston Martin, then Renault, and now with the Woking team.
The decision to leave the energetic brand's team was heavily criticized by Christian Horner, who even said he did not understand why Ricciardo had refused what he called a "stratospheric offer". During the F1 weekend in Austria, the Australian was also asked about Marko's position on the matter and fired back. "Helmut has mocked me a lot over the years, so I didn't need a rethink. After I left, there was no need for that anymore!"
"Obviously, I have fewer interactions with Helmut today, but I would say the relationship is still the same. It's very honest, very Helmut," he added, assuring, however, that he still harbors a lot of admiration for the Taurus consultant. "My admiration and respect for the person remain unchanged. He is a good guy," he added.
Amid the numerous speculations about his future at McLaren in 2023, Ricciardo assured that he has no regrets about leaving the Austrian team. "No 'I told you so'. That's part of the sport. And we will move on," he stressed.
Marko recently spoke about Ricciardo, recalling that in 2014 he shared the pits with four-time champion Sebastian Vettel and won three races, while the German endured a season without climbing to the top step of the podium. "When Max [Verstappen] came on the scene, he was at a critical point in his career. Instead of taking up the fight, he wanted to keep his distance."
"You know what happened next. That's bad. Working with him has always been good. His final speed is comparable to Max's, but the final consistency is lacking," Marko compared in an interview with Red Bulletin.