Helmut Marko enjoys his Verstappen: the satisfied comment after the Australian GP qualifying. The Dutchman once again surprises those who thought Red Bull was out of the game, securing an excellent third place. A result that is golden for Milton Keynes, while they struggle with Liam Lawson, who is out in Q1. However, the prediction for the race, Helmut Marko says, is still golden.
Never count Max Verstappen out of the game. Even when the car seems to be suffering from a thousand problems, the “Max factor” comes into play and never disappoints. On a day of Ferrari‘s downfall, the causes of which are still to be analyzed, the Dutchman steals the spotlight with a champion’s performance. Not enough to challenge McLaren, of course, but the race is still open.
Helmut Marko is the one grinning, as he was the first to predict a Red Bull as a direct challenger to the MCL39. The Austrian super consultant is already ready to bet on a Max Verstappen victory, although he is more cautious: “Clearly, we still lack performance and I’m surprised to be among the top three,” he said to De Telegraaf.
Helmut Marko and that €500 bet won on Max Verstappen
Still speaking to De Telegraaf, Helmut Marko doesn’t hide his satisfaction after qualifying: “Compared to the Bahrain tests, we’ve made a big step forward because back then the difference was, I think, at least half a second. I also won €500 from Jos Verstappen because he thought we’d be more than five-tenths behind McLaren.” – he pointed out – “For tomorrow, I’ve already bet on a Max victory with a bookmaker. In fact, I didn’t think the gap to McLaren would be this big. Up to Turn 11, it was a neck-and-neck race, then we ran out of tires. But tomorrow will be different again.” – the Red Bull advisor concluded at the end of the qualifying session for the 2025 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix at the 5.278-kilometre Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit in Melbourne.
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