Marko candid about close relationship with Verstappen: 'He was different in that even then'
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- Nicole Mulder
The bond between Max Verstappen and Helmut Marko is and remains ironclad. In fact, Verstappen once said he sees the 81-year-old Austrian as a kind of second father. Marko also acknowledges his close relationship with Verstappen, ever since the Dutchman's early teens.
How strong the bond between Verstappen and Marko is,was made evident when the Red Bull Racing driver openly expressed his support for the advisor amid the turmoil within the Austrian racing stable in 2024. The now four-time world champion was adamant: if Marko had to leave, he would also leave the team himself.
Marko: "Max has improved himself again"
The conflict eventually subsided, but the unrest within the team marked the beginning of a season that was difficult for Red Bull in several areas. Since the Miami Grand Prix, it became increasingly clear that the RB20 was not performing at the level it was expected to.
"Max's successes actually masked the problems we had with the car," Marko told Formula One Magazine. "Although our car was not the fastest, second fastest or third fastest, he always made the most of it. Max improved himself again."
Marko on close relationship with Verstappen
Verstappen, who largely owes his switch from Scuderia Toro Rosso to Red Bull Racing to Marko, once described the Austrian as a kind of second father figure. That the bond between the two goes beyond that of employee and employer, Marko also acknowledges. "I admit that directly," he says.
"Whether I am his second father? Haha, you won't hear me say that. Look, I don't know how long I have been working in this sport. What I do know is the first time I had a serious conversation with Max: he was 13 at the time. Normally in such a conversation I talk to a young driver for 10 to 15 minutes. With Max, it was more than an hour," Marko concludes.
This article was written in collaboration with Norberto Mujica.
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