'His Superiority Could Be Seen' Marko Praises Verstappen

Sunday, 03 March 2024 at 18:00

Red Bull Racing advisor Helmut Marko applauded Max Verstappen after he dominated the first race of the 2024 season - the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The triple World Champion won the race at Bahrain International Circuit with a comfortable margin of more than 20 seconds ahead of everyone.

Verstappen was so far ahead he could afford another pit stop in the end if he wanted to. Everything went smooth for the Dutchman, he started from pole, and led every single lap of the race without any complication until the final lap.

Usually, a safety car might complicate things a bit for the race leader, but there was not a single safety car during the first race of the 2024 season. Assessing the race after the end, Helmut Marko told ServusTV:

"It was overwhelming. This was not what we expected, but everything just worked. Max won at the start and then just disappeared."

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The most crucial point of the race for the triple World Champion was the start, where he needed to keep Charles Leclerc behind, and he was successful at doing so.

"You can't describe it any other way. His superiority could be seen because his fastest lap was two seconds faster than anyone else."

Verstappen's rivals like Ferrari or Mercedes, for example, struggled with overheating issues, but the Dutchman had the advantage of clean air in the front, so it was easier for him to manage.

"Max always drove in clean air, so for him, there was no problem. It didn't affect his car."

The 26-year-old's teammate Sergio Perez completed the one-two finish and maximum points for Red Bull after starting the race from P5. Carlos Sainz closely followed him, but Marko asserted that it was only managing of pace from Checo's side.

"Checo controlled the gap to Sainz. There was no point in attacking. Anyway, it was an overwhelmingly good result. The strategy, the pit stops, it was incredible."