Former Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko was impressed by Max Verstappen’s performance at the Nürburgring last weekend. The Austrian recalls how two years earlier he forbade the Dutch driver from racing on the ‘Green Hell’ because the risk was too great at the time. ‘When Max gets in the car, he knows exactly how fast the record is and wants to break it’, Marko explains.
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The Formula 1 drivers had the weekend off last weekend, but that didn’t stop Max Verstappen from hitting the track anyway. The Dutchman participated in the NLS2 race at the Nürburgring, and – despite the later disqualification – enjoyed racing on the Nordschleife. Helmut Marko also enjoyed the performance of his former protégé. “It was impressive how he made his way through the field”, Marko tells OE24. “Even though his team was disqualified: it was primarily training for the 24-hour race, and that was very successful.”
The former Red Bull adviser sees how much pleasure Verstappen gets from long-distance races, which he himself once forbade for the four-time world champion. “That was two years ago. The risk would have been too great”, Marko recalls. “When Max gets in the car, he knows exactly how fast the record is and wants to break it.”
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‘Apart from the Ferrari show, not much happens in F1’
While Verstappen enjoys racing at the Nürburgring, that’s a completely different story in Formula 1 right now. The Dutchman has already said he doesn’t enjoy racing under the new regulations, and Marko shares this view as a spectator. “The new Formula 1 only lives from the Ferrari show at the starts. If you take that away, not much happens. A large part of the overtaking manoeuvres is actually just passing. But the season is still young, maybe it will work out.”
Marko also keeps his hopes up for his own former team, despite Verstappen’s recent retirement in China. “Red Bull is known for being able to catch up quickly and effectively. In that respect, anything is still possible. The good news is that the two races in April have been cancelled, which gives the team even more time.”
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