Marko: "The atmosphere at Red Bull is good, but less cheerful since he left"

Daniel Ricciardo left Red Bull Racing after 2018 after tensions with the team reached a boiling point. Helmut Marko has admitted that the team misses him but they are performing well without him.  

“The atmosphere in the team is good now, but not so cheerful since he [Ricciardo] left. He is one of the fastest drivers and if needed he can find the right speed very quickly, but his jokes are also missed," Marko said to Motorsport-Magazin.

Can Albon improve things? 

Marko believes that they have found a suitable replacement in Alex Albon and he is hoping that his performance in 2020 will continue to improve. 

“Alex did very well. He has joined the team without ever testing the car and has earned points in every race. Only not in Brazil, when he was hit by Hamilton. He is critical of himself and knows what he can improve. It is all very positive and we hope that he can be a good teammate for Verstappen this year."

Verstappen himself recently indicated that he also hopes for a return to the dynamics that prevailed within the team when Ricciardo was still part of it. He was not referring to his jokes, but rather to the fact that the second car was more competitive and helped drive the team to success.