{"id":347578,"date":"2025-12-14T14:05:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-14T14:05:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/347578\/"},"modified":"2025-12-14T14:05:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-14T14:05:08","slug":"helmut-marko-issues-max-verstappen-warning-to-f1-rivals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/347578\/","title":{"rendered":"Helmut Marko issues Max Verstappen warning to F1 rivals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Outgoing Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has claimed that Max Verstappen<\/a> is only getting better and \u201cI can\u2019t see an end to this development\u201d in Formula 1<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After overseeing the Milton Keynes-based team\u2019s junior program since its inception, Marko has called it quits on his two-decade-long tenure with Red Bull.<\/p>\n

The 82-year-old has been credited with scouting drivers like Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and Verstappen. Though for the latter, he holds the highest regard.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe connection was certainly a very intense one, or the most intimate, I can\u2019t say,\u201d Marko told ORF about his relationship with the four-time F1 Champion. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut it was the closest connection I\u2019ve ever had with a driver.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 28-year-old narrowly missed out on a fifth consecutive title in Abu Dhabi to McLaren\u2019s Lando Norris last week.<\/p>\n

Having endured a difficult first half of the season with a tricky RB21, the Dutchman mounted a sensational comeback since the summer shutdown.<\/p>\n

Winning six races out of 10, he closed a 104-point deficit to the top to only two points after the season finale.<\/p>\n

Marko believes that while Verstappen failed to retain his crown, he will be fighting for many more titles in the future, given the rate at which he has been progressing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fascinating thing was that with each passing year, Max Verstappen became faster, more mature, better,\u201d he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd to this day, I can\u2019t see an end to this development, even though he is already the best driver. That was the fascinating thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moreover, the Austrian taskmaster also highlighted how, with time, Verstappen has also rounded his personality off the track, developing into a natural leader of men.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hardly ever had any differences of opinion. There were a few silly things, especially in the early stages. But the more successful he became, the simpler his approach became. He has become much calmer,\u201d Marko explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe hardly ever has any lapses or outbursts, which were of course present in the early stages. And he has become an incredibly perfect or incredible personality for his age.<\/p>\n

\u201cMax has become such a personality that, despite his relatively young age, he leads a team and can lead it the way he does.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"RedHelmut Marko has been alongside Max Verstappen\u2019s side at Red Bull since the start<\/p>\n

Marko reveals morose Verstappen conversation post F1 exit <\/p>\n

Verstappen\u2019s title loss in Abu Dhabi<\/a> made Marko realise that his time at the pinnacle of single-seater, open-wheel racing had come to an end.<\/p>\n

During a dinner with Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff, it was decided that Marko would be stepping down from his role within the team.<\/p>\n

That said, while Verstappen was initially scheduled to be at that meeting, he was unable to make it. <\/p>\n

Marko revealed that he spoke to the Dutchman the next day, and it was apparent that the duo shared a great bond.<\/p>\n

\u201cMax should have been there, too,\u201d he said. \u201cThere were some problems with his flight, so he wasn\u2019t there.<\/p>\n

\u201cI called him the next day. It wasn\u2019t a normal conversation. There was a certain melancholy in the air. He said he never could have imagined that he would ever achieve such success.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE \u2013 Yuki Tsunoda reveals one regret about Red Bull F1 promotion<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Outgoing Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has claimed that Max Verstappen is only getting better and \u201cI can\u2019t…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":347579,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[572],"tags":[64,63,817,75926,825,806,805,803,804,15196,85],"class_list":["post-347578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-motosport","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-f1","tag-marko","tag-max-verstappen","tag-motor","tag-motor-sports","tag-motosport","tag-motosports","tag-redbull","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/347578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=347578"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/347578\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/347579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=347578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=347578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=347578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}