Head of Red Bull junior driver programme Dr Helmut Marko has stated that Daniil Kvyat possesses more talent than Brendon Hartley and Pierre Gasly. The Red Bull junior team demoted Kvyat twice during the 2017 season, first before the Malaysian Grand Prix as Gasly made his debut.
However, with a seat available for the US Grand Prix, Kvyat was brought back only to be dropped completely from the Red Bull programme following the race. Toro Rosso confirmed not long after that Gasly and Hartley would make up its driver line-up for next year.
When asked by Autosport if Kvyat was more talented than the current Toro Rosso drivers, Marko replied: “Yes, I completely agree.