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Marko sees Mercedes fumble: "When the pressure is there, mistakes are made"
- GPblog.com
Helmut Marko doesn't really understand why Ferrari took the risk to start from pole position with Charles Leclerc. According to the Austrian Red Bull Racing advisor, it was to be expected that somewhere something would go wrong with the Ferrari car. Marko is also even more impressed by Verstappen.
"We were a bit disappointed after qualifying," Marko admits to the German RTL. However, Verstappen was still allowed to start first in the Monaco Grand Prix."But then what was actually expected happened at Ferrari. We were surprised because we have had such a crash twice before with Max. Both times the gearbox had to be replaced. They took the risk, but unfortunately, it didn't do them any favours."
Ferrari themselves, however, deny that Leclerc's DNS has anything to do with the gearbox, but it doesn't matter any more for Red Bull either. "It was a nerve-wracking race because it goes on and on, 78 laps. Perez drove great too, Gasly too, he kept Hamilton behind for so long," said Marko, who is impressed with his 23-year-old pupil from the Netherlands. "Max has definitely reached a new level of maturity. He wanted a lot of information at the beginning - so we said forget it!"
Marko points out mistakes Mercedes
Verstappen was able to finish the race in a controlled manner, without having to worry about the men behind him. This was partly due to Valtteri Bottas' retirement: "Bottas' pit stop also shows: When the pressure is there, mistakes are made. But Ferrari is back, which means more work for us," Marko concluded.