Helmut Marko believes Red Bull can depend on McLaren’s in-fighting or its “joker” card, Max Verstappen, to take both Formula 1 titles in 2025.
The British squad claimed its first Constructors’ Championship since 1998 last year, as Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri led the Papaya revival.
However, the duo failed to dethrone Verstappen as he secured his fourth consecutive title after the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Squabbles over team orders made the headlines for the team in Hungary and Monza, as McLaren eventually declared it would prioritise Norris for his title fight against Verstappen.
Yet, it seemed the Woking-based outfit acted too late as the Briton was unable to catch the Dutchman.
McLaren and Norris are the favourites to be crowned champions in 2025, but Marko feels Piastri can be a nuisance and challenge his team-mate.
The Austrian is counting on the pair getting in each other’s way, leaving Red Bull to sweep in and collect the points.
“I rate Piastri as strong, and so I hope that they keep points away from each other, which we can take advantage of,” Marko told sport.de.
“Max is clearly our number one, and I don’t think Piastri will voluntarily declare himself [the] second driver.
“At some circuits [last year] he was just as fast, if not faster than Lando.”
But if the Milton Keynes-based squad struggles with car performance, Marko will be counting on Verstappen to drag the team along yet again.
“If the car is not optimal, we always have the joker, Max, who can put his brilliance on display,” he said.
Red Bull playing catch-up ahead of F1 2025 season
In the same interview, the 81-year-old spoke about his thoughts on the RB21 ahead of the upcoming F1 campaign.
After pre-season testing in Bahrain, he felt its rivals already had a “head start”.
“In my opinion, it will be a three-way or four-way battle between McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari and us,” Marko added.
“Although, if you look at the test results, McLaren already has a head start.
“That was the case in both the short and long runs.
“The current favourite is clearly McLaren.”
Red Bull capitalised on a good start in 2024 to help give Verstappen the early advantage on his way to winning the F1 championship.
McLaren’s mid-season charge was not enough to overturn the damage done by the 27-year-old in the first 10 races.
So, coming out of the blocks early will be key to the success of the team as it hunts for a double in 2025.
McLaren boss Andrea Stella, however, downplayed its chances after stating its impressive long-run pace wouldn’t necessarily translate to the other circuits.
READ MORE: Helmut Marko reveals the gap Red Bull must close to McLaren
