Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has revealed the advice he gave to Max Verstappen before the Dutchman landed a podium in Formula 1‘s Mexico City Grand Prix.
Verstappen was able to make a small yet crucial dent in the championship lead held by the McLaren drivers at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez last Sunday.
Claiming his 123rd podium, the four-time F1 champion now trails 36 points behind new championship leader Lando Norris with four races remaining this season.
Going into the 71-lap race, Verstappen was adamant the RB21 had no pace at all to compete at the sharp end of the field after a disappointing qualifying session.
Marko, on the other hand, was bullish about the Dutchman’s chances, predicting a podium for him in the race, which he went on to score with a one-stop strategy.
“Yes, you see,” he gloated when asked about his optimism heading into the race despite Verstappen starting from fifth on the grid.
“No, nobody wanted to bet with me, so it’s not fun. Nobody believed in that.”
Marko suggested that a ride-height compromise on the RB21 meant that low fuel qualifying runs saw the car bottom out through Turn 9 – shaving off massive speed.
This, the Austrian had conceded, would not be a problem under race conditions.
“Basically, we were too low in qualifying, but if you are driving with full tanks, you don’t go so quick through the corners,” he explained.
“And the downforce is not the same, so this touching wasn’t there anymore.
He also revealed the advice he gave Verstappen before the race.
“I also told Max this morning, you have to think positive. And you saw what’s possible,” he added.
Monza win made Marko believe Verstappen’s title credentials
Red Bull and Verstappen had all but written off any title ambitions coming out of the summer shutdown.
That said, since the Dutch Grand Prix, the 28-year-old has been on a run of three victories in five rounds.
Marko revealed the Italian Grand Prix, which saw Verstappen win the race from pole position, reignited his hopes that the team could land a fifth consecutive title.
“I started believing after Monza already,” he beamed.
“Every point is essential. As we know, we must do everything perfectly. In the last four races, there are 116 points to score.
“But we must be perfect, and we can’t afford small mistakes in the set-up, which happened here.”
READ MORE – Max Verstappen assesses title chances after F1 Mexico GP
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