Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has warned the team’s Formula 1 rivals that Max Verstappen’s advantage at the Austrian Grand Prix could be even greater in race trim.
Verstappen dominated proceedings in qualifying at the Red Bull Ring as he surged to pole position with a four-tenth gap over McLaren’s Lando Norris in second place.
The Dutchman was enthused with the set-up changes on his RB20 that enabled him to open up a bigger margin over his nearest rival than second through to seventh.
With Red Bull having been trumped under one-lap conditions across the previous three rounds, Marko also expressed surprise that Verstappen emerged untouchable.
Marko has disclosed that Red Bull has tailored its car towards being stronger over the race runs, providing an ominous sign to McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari behind.
“I am hugely surprised by this difference,” Marko told De Telegraaf.
“Four-tenths on this track, that means a second difference on a circuit like Spa-Francorchamps, or maybe more.
”And in the set-up, we were indeed focusing mainly on Sunday’s race. The car worked from the first lap on Friday. That helped us tremendously.
“But we thought it would be about thousandths of a second here. Four-tenths, that’s incredibly impressive.
“Any lap from him on fresh rubber would have been good enough for pole position.”
Verstappen, who opened the season with seven straight pole positions, expressed that the balance he experienced behind the wheel was one that had been missing.
“It’s been a while since I felt so good in the car. This is very positive, for the whole team.
“The gap is very big. But when the balance of the car is there, you can attack the corners well.”
Verstappen’s exploits have come amid the latest flashpoint between his father Jos and Red Bull boss Christian Horner over a scrapped demo run at the Red Bull Ring.
The reigning champion admitted post-Sprint that the entire saga “could’ve been avoided” and Marko hopes Red Bull’s latest on-track success would change headlines.
“And let’s forget that stupid story now,” Marko added. “Max has made the difference again here. This is a huge boost for the team.”
Meanwhile, Verstappen Sr remarked that his son has tended to extract even more performance when there are disruptions ongoing in the background
”The more whining, the faster Max drives,” Verstappen Sr, who was meant to drive the 2012 title-winning Red Bull RB8, quipped. “That was the same in the past.”
