For a long time now, Red Bull has been accustomed to placing bets on Max Verstappen’s performances and achievements, and this time it was Gianpiero Lambiase and Helmut Marko’s turn. The Italian was forced to pay $100 to the Austrian team boss, thanks to Max Verstappen.
Red Bull’s legendary bets
Marko is no stranger to betting on Red Bull’s star driver’s ability to accomplish impossible feats. However, last season he had bet against him, not expecting a pole position or even a front row start for the Dutchman at the Abu Dhabi GP. He made a €500 bet with Christian Horner, which he lost when Max Verstappen, after being half a second slower in FP3, took pole by a tenth ahead of Charles Leclerc.
“I would never have believed we could recover in qualifying as we did,” he said. “I should have known Max better!” Max Verstappen, surprised by Helmut Marko’s opinion, replied, “Lesson learned: never bet against me.”
A few months later, at the start of the 2024 Formula 1 season in Bahrain, Helmut Marko bet on Max Verstappen again, this time placing €50 with Gianpiero Lambiase, the race engineer, who doubted Verstappen could put his RB20 on pole. Max Verstappen took pole in qualifying, and Helmut Marko won the bet, though he had to split the winnings with the driver. “I earned €50, but I have to give 25 to Max—he’s a tough negotiator,” Helmut Marko laughed.
Lambiase was once again the victim of a Marko bet in Brazil: they wagered on whether Verstappen, starting from P17 on the grid, could reach the podium. Helmut Marko said yes; Gianpiero Lambiase said no. Max Verstappen not only reached the podium but won the race with an impressive 20-second lead. Helmut Marko told *De Telegraaf*, “I bet with Max’s engineer that Max would reach the podium. GP didn’t believe it.” The wager was for $100, but Marko had only bet on the podium, not the victory. “Max always wants to do more.”
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