Former Toro Rosso duo Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari showed little evidence to prove that they’re winners, according to Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko.
The pairing were both dropped at the end of 2011 in favour of Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, having spent three years with the outfit.
Team principal Franz Tost earlier described the team as a “rookie training school” and that once a driver had two seasons under their belt, [they] are no longer a rookie.”
Marko agrees, and believes neither Buemi or Alguersuari showed the potential to wins races in those two/three years that they were with Toro Rosso.
“Toro Rosso was created to give young drivers a chance. Alguersuari and Buemi had it for three years and after this time it’s possible to evaluate a driver’s development,” he told Gazzetta dello Sport.
“We haven’t seen in them any possibility of growth,” he added. “Both are worthy of grand prix racing, but for us that’s not enough: we need winners.”
However, Red Bull opted to sign Swiss driver Buemi as their test and reserve driver for the 2012 season.