F1 News
Marko sees the benefit of the ban on party mode: "Would have been a second gap"
During free practice and qualifying, Max Verstappen seemed to be able to compete with Mercedes for pole position, but in Q3 the gap with Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas was slightly larger. This is the second race in which the qualifying modes have been banned.
Mercedes has always had a reputation for having just a little more power in Q3. They were now faster again, but according to Helmut Marko that gap was smaller than before and so we see the effect of the new regulations.
Marko explains to ORF: "You can tell: We're not as far [behind] as in previous races. If qualifying mode still existed, we would definitely be a second behind."
Third place for Verstappen the minimum
Marko, just like Verstappen, sounds pretty positive after qualifying. The Austrian is therefore looking forward to tomorrow. “We are already fully prepared for the race, and it looks much better there. In any case, P3 should be safe. ”