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‘No team orders at Red Bull, we race’ – Marko

Helmut Marko says Red Bull Racing won't consider instigating team orders for Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo this season even if they find themselves in the hunt for the 2017 F1 world title.

Verstappen and Ricciardo head into the 2017 season with high hopes that Red Bull can exploit the shift in technical regulations to take the fight to Mercedes this year, not least with the exit of 2016 champion Nico Rosberg.

However, with Valtteri Bottas joining Mercedes in 2017, it is feared Hamilton will have the advantage in the team that has dominated for the past three years, particularly over his new team-mate.

Despite this, Marko says there will be no team orders levelled at Verstappen and Ricciardo - who have been closely matched since the Dutchman made his sensational race winning Red Bull debut in Spain last year -, even if it appears Hamilton has the clear edge at Mercedes.

"There's definitely the risk that this will happen, but it doesn't change our racing philosophy and our racing enthusiasm," he told Motorsport-Magazin. There won't be team orders at Red Bull. We're more racers."

Marko goes on to say he would have been more 'fun' in choosing Mercedes junior driver Pascal Wehrlein over the more experienced Bottas for the top drive.

"It would have been different at Red Bull. We would have given the cockpit to a junior. No risk, no fun." 

Zdroj: crash.net