Doornbos: "That's what Red Bull want and what they need next year"

After just over a year and a half it turns out that Alexander Albon is not up to the performance of his teammate Max Verstappen. The Thai-Brit falls short and there is a lot of speculation about his possible successor. At the Ziggo F1 cafe they see a strong replacement in Nico Hulkenberg.

Red Bull Racing aims at worldtitle

When asked who Verstappen prefers to see as his teammate in the future, the Dutchman immediately started talking about Nico Hülkenberg. It seems as if he prefers the Dutch-speaking German. After all, Verstappen can't do much with the data of Alexander Albon during a GP weekend.

At the F1 cafe they see a strong team mate for Verstappen in Hulkenberg. Former F1-driver Robert Doornbos kicks off: "Yes, he seized his chance and handed over his business card. Just drive that car home and grab points. That's what Red Bull wants and what they need next year. They really want to go for that manufacturer's title".

With Albon, there's no title

Former F1-driver Jan Lammers thinks that the Dutchman doesn't care: "Basically Max doesn't care at all. He just has his surroundings and his car. A teammate is important, but you can't do anything with it, because the focus is on your own work".

Doornbos objects with the example of Mercedes: "Well, at Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton, eh? They spend all their time looking at each other's data in order to find that limit in one lap. In the race Lewis can always lean on Bottas as a good second man. He [Verstappen] misses that on Sunday."

Tom Coronel in turn wonders which driver would like to play the second violin for Verstappen. To which Doornbos reacts witty: "Anyone who comes next to Max, really shouldn't start thinking that he's going to be the first driver."