Marko saw possible podium lost for Verstappen: 'Was maybe too cautious'
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F1 News
Helmut Marko says a podium was in the cards for Max Verstappen in the Chinese Grand Prix. Red Bull Racing's chief advisor argues that the four-time world champion was perhaps a little too cautious with his tyres and stresses that his poor start did not help either.
Marko saw possible podium for Verstappen
Verstappen maximised what was ultimately a difficult weekend for Red Bull by finishing fourth in the China GP, the same position he started from. Marko explained why the race was so difficult. "In the second stint on the hard tyre, we were as fast as the leaders. We lost the race because of the first stint on the medium tyre," the consultant explained to German Sky Sports.
"Also the start was a bit unfortunate," he adds. "We fell back and maybe it was still playing in Max's head that the medium tyre was quite vulnerable in the sprint race. Maybe he was too cautious because of that."
In the second stint, Verstappen won back the two spots he'd previously lost at the start from Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc and he also got close to George Russell in the closing stages, who ended up securing the final podium place behind Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. "But by then it was too late," said the 81-year-old Austrian.
He suspects a podium finish for Verstappen would have been in the cards if a few factors had been different. "With a successful start - without losing two places - and with more pace in the first stint, it could at least have been enough for a podium finish," Marko concludes.
This article was written in collaboration with Nicole Mulder.