Christian Horner blames Helmut Marko for Red Bull junior failures

Christian Horner says the likes of Alex Albon, Liam Lawson and Pierre Gasly were promoted to Red Bull’s senior Formula 1 team too soon and blames Helmut Marko for this.

Red Bull’s junior driver programme is one of the most significant in F1, but also the most notorious for how ruthless it has proven to be over the years.

While it has produced world champions in Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen, the expectation for success has led to a number of drivers being given little time to prove themselves.

Albon, Gasly and Lawson promotions came too early

Pierre Gasly was promoted from Toro Rosso after just one full season to Red Bull for 2019, but was sent back to the sister team after 12 rounds.

Alex Albon was then promoted to replace him for the rest of 2019 and the 2020 campaign, before being dropped altogether.

He wouldn’t return to F1 until 2022 when he signed a Williams deal.

When Red Bull parted ways with a struggling Sergio Perez at the end of 2024, Liam Lawson was promoted from AlphaTauri for 2025.

But he only competed in two races for Red Bull before being sent back to AlphaTauri in favour of Yuki Tsunoda.

This approach had proven successful for Red Bull in the past, with Daniil Kvyat sent back to Toro Rosso after a few rounds in 2016 to be replaced by Verstappen, who won on his debut in Spain.

Speaking on the High Performance Podcast, ex-Red Bull team boss Horner says those drivers were promoted “too soon” and points the finger at Helmut Marko for this.

“Some of these drivers were arriving too soon,” he said.

“I didn’t completely agree with the speed at which they were arriving into Red Bull Racing, but there was a determination to have drivers from the Red Bull Junior pool, because I think, in Helmut’s mind, it didn’t justify its existence if we weren’t quickly promoting young drivers, which I felt sometimes was too soon in their development.

“I think Alex was too soon. I think Gasly was too soon. I think Lawson was too soon.

“These guys, they needed more time to evolve and develop.

“I mean, how long did George Russell have in a difficult Williams before getting that call-up? They’re more rounded by the time they arrive.”

Horner “worked very hard” to get Albon Williams seat

Horner added that Red Bull’s approach was shaped by its “privileged position” of having two teams, but concedes that it was “impossible” for those drivers to succeed in the environment they found themselves in.

“I think the feeling was that Red Bull was in a privileged position of having four seats, had the two teams, so none of those drivers were just dropped,” he added.

“Gasly went back into Racing Bulls, was able to demonstrate value and go to another team.

“Albon, I worked very hard and fought very hard to get him that drive with Williams. We contributed financially to getting him that drive.

“Liam obviously having the ability to step back into that team. [Daniil] Kvyat was the same.

“But the reality was, they’d all arrived there too soon.

“They’d had either a year or less than a year’s of Formula 1 experience, and then being put up into a lead team, in a difficult car, against a generational talent, that was almost impossible for them to succeed in that environment.

“And of course, suddenly you step into a top team, the scrutiny on you is way more.

“The pressure goes up, and you could see, visibly see, that they were feeling that pressure.

“Whether it was Pierre, I remember getting lapped in Austria and at the Hungarian Grand Prix two races in a row, and he was broken in those races.

“Liam at the beginning of last year, you could see the toll that it was taking on them and for me, it was because they were arriving there too quickly.”