Red Bull didn't think for a moment of Russell: "Perez is a better option"

After George Russell's unique performance in Bahrain, there were several people who hoped that Red Bull Racing would give a seat to the Brit. However, Helmut Marko now indicates that they never looked at Russell.

As a Formula 2 champion, Russell may not be quite in place at Williams. Where his Formula 2 rivals have been allowed to race for Red Bull Racing (Alexander Albon) and McLaren (Lando Norris) this season, Russell can be found at the back of the grid at Williams. As a junior of Mercedes, Russell has bad luck in that respect.

That bad luck turned into luck in Bahrain when Lewis Hamilton became infected with the coronavirus and Russell had the chance to show what he could do in the fastest car in the field. Russell impressed, and because Mercedes insists on Valtteri Bottas, people wondered if Russell was an option for Red Bull.

''No, he has a ten-year contract with Toto Wolff. He is a Mercedes junior and we are looking for an interim solution. Perez is a better option for that," says Helmut Marko to Motorsport-total.com. Buying Russell from Mercedes was therefore not an option. ''Russell is a junior at Mercedes, so you can't put a false label on that."

Marko thinks Russell is a good driver, but wasn't that overwhelmed after his performance in Sakhir. ''Russell is an intelligent and fast young man. His drive for Mercedes was great, but with the uncertainty of Bottas it wasn't really a fair comparison. Bottas was shocked by his disappointing performance on Friday and was underperforming all weekend," concludes the Austrian.