Helmut Marko has suggested any talk of “transfer fees” involving Red Bull is “complete nonsense” as rumours swirled about the team’s future lineup.

Red Bull have been linked with a number of inflated fees recently whether that be Sergio Perez’s exit price or their pursuit of Franco Colapinto but Marko insists none of it is true.

Helmut Marko denies Sergio Perez exit fee

At one point, Red Bull were rumoured to be contemplating paying off Perez’s deal whilst also offering a lucrative enough packet to get Colapinto out of his Williams deal.

Now though, they have gone for a far cheaper move with Perez walking away while Liam Lawson has moved up from Racing Bulls.

On the numbers attached to the Red Bull name of late, senior advisor Marko described them as “complete nonsense.”

“There’s [been] a lot of speculation about this, including rumours about possible transfer fees, which are complete nonsense,” Marko wrote in his Speedweek column.

Lawson is the big winner of the Red Bull reshuffle, going from without a seat to partnering Max Verstappen but Red Bull boss Christian Horner warned it was a “daunting task” for any driver.

“His arrival continues the team’s long history of promoting from within the Red Bull Junior Programme and he follows in the footsteps of championship and race-winning drivers such as Sebastian Vettel and of course, Max Verstappen,” Horner said of Lawson.

More reaction to Sergio Perez’s departure

Liam Lawson makes ‘driving style’ declaration ahead of Max Verstappen Red Bull challenge

‘Performed better in commercials than on track’ – your Perez exit reaction

“There’s no doubt that racing alongside Max, a four-time champion and undoubtedly one of the greatest drivers ever seen in F1, is a daunting task, but I’m sure Liam can rise to that challenge and deliver some outstanding results for us next year.”

Verstappen has driven alongside four team-mates so far in his Red Bull career and has beaten all of them. His final tally against Perez saw him on top in 79 of 90 races while Alex Albon (17 of 26) and Pierre Gasly (11 of 12) also lost more than they won.

Daniel Ricciardo is the driver to have come closest to defeating Verstappen but even he could only win 24 races to Verstappen’s 32.

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