Former Toro Rosso driver Jaime Alguersuari recalled the “insane” conversation he had with Helmut Marko during the 2010 Japanese Grand Prix weekend.

Feeling the famed pressure of Marko, Alguersuari revealed that the Austrian told him he “really needed to win a race in a Toro Rosso” which led the driver to come up with a bizarre proposal.

Jaime Alguersuari reveals ‘insane’ Helmut Marko request

Alguersuari completed two and a half seasons for Red Bull’s junior team but even then found the pressure of Marko to nearly push him to extremes as he recalled on the Beyond the Grid podcast.

“Helmut always expects us to do something that is out of reach. In 2010 there was a system, the F-duct. It was something McLaren had tested at Barcelona and from then on every team copied it, except a few teams like us.

“We couldn’t do it because we weren’t good enough for that system. That eventually led to DRS. In 2010, we were the only team scoring points without DRS.

“But it didn’t matter to Helmut and maybe not to Franz Tost either. I actually think it did, but at first glance we were just not good enough. But they expected us to perform miracles. And I remember meeting Helmut at Suzuka. It was kind of an extension of the decision on the drivers.

“And I asked him: ‘What is this for? We beat Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg, with much less budget than them. We are doing great with the tyres and with the management of the strategies. What is going on here? And why?’

“And he told me, honest as he always was: ‘You have to win a race. You really need to win a race in a Toro Rosso’.

“I was like: okay, you know what I’m going to do? And I told him that right away on a Friday night in Suzuka. I said: “I’m going to win the race on Sunday, but I don’t care what’s going to happen and what the stewards are going to say, because I’m not going to drive the last chicane the way it’s meant to be.

“I go straight and cut the last chicane. Then you miss 1.5 seconds. Hamilton was on pole, or whoever, although I think Vettel was on pole, and I miss 1.5 seconds. I know your car has 180 points more downforce than my car. There is no chance of me going 1.5 seconds [quicker] not even two-tenths.

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“I am doing my best in every corner. So let’s make a deal. I’ll sign the paper and win on Sunday, but I’ll cut the chicane every lap. He started laughing and then I left the meeting room. It was insane.”

Marko is known to be a hard taskmaster, especially when it comes to the team’s young drivers, but that approach has put Red Bull in a tricky spot when it comes to finding a team-mate for Max Verstappen.

Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon both came through the Red Bull academy only to be shipped out to other teams after unsuccessful stints in the main seat.

Liam Lawson was the latest academy graduate promoted to Red Bull but he is back at Racing Bulls after just two races.

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