British reporter Ted Kravitz made some shocking revelations regarding Alphatuari driver Nyck de Vries, who has had a turbulent rookie season so far. With multiple poor performances across the 2023 season, rumours have been circulating regarding possibly moving out De Vries and possibly giving chances to Liam Lawson or reserve driver Daniel Ricardo.
Speaking on the Ted’s Notebook segment after the qualifying in Austria on Friday, Kravitz stated that De Vries has a four-race ultimatum to improve his performance or risk being replaced. Kravitz also revealed possible replacements for the Dutch driver, if he fails to perform well. In the coming races.
“Nyck de Vries, we talk about ‘Drive to Survive’,” Kravitz said. “He really is driving to survive. All the bosses will say about this… the rumour that has come out of the Dutch press that Nyck has been told that he’s got the next four races on circuits he knows – here (Austria), Silverstone, Hungary, and Spa to really transform his season. Otherwise, he’s out, they’re going to put Liam Lawson in – that’s the rumour that’s coming from the Dutch press,” he further added.
Talking about Scuderia AlphaTauri team principal Franz Tost, Kravitz said, “Franz Tost was asked directly about this in the pen, and he said ‘it is up to Nyck to make the story go away’. If Nyck performs, then this story will go away and he will not be under threat – he will keep the seat for the rest of the season.
“If Nyck does not perform, he wouldn’t continue… he wouldn’t finish the thought. He said Nyck needs to perform. The driver decides for himself, Nyck decides for himself, Franz said. “If he’s slow, then he is in trouble. If he’s quick and has performance, then he stays,” Kravitz added.
