'Sensational' Hamilton Could Have Troubled Verstappen In United States Says Marko

Thursday, 26 October 2023 at 07:00

Max Verstappen won the 2023 United States Grand Prix by two seconds ahead of Lewis Hamilton, but it could have been much closer according to Helmut Marko.

Red Bull and Mercedes were close to a fight that would certainly remind every F1 fan of the 2021 season during the 2023 United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas.

However, it didn't happen as Verstappen managed to finish two seconds ahead of second Hamilton, and even if the British driver overtook the Flying Dutchman, it wouldn't count for much as he was disqualified after the race.

Yet, there was a point in the race when the seven-time World Champion was eating up the deficit to the race leader, who was obviously Verstappen. Although he didn't get close enough to try and overtake the Dutch driver, a few more laps could have made it more interesting according to Helmut Marko, who spoke to Sky Germany.

"Lewis had a sensational race. Didn't make any mistakes. He [Max] had it under control, but let's put it this way, after five laps it would have been very close."

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Despite leading for the majority of the race, Verstappen struggled with a break issue, which caused him multiple issues, and the three-time World Champion was clearly nervous, as fans all around the world could hear from his radio. Speaking after the race, Marko shed light on the struggles.

"We changed the brake pads and something got in there. He didn't have the right feeling. Sometimes it over-braked at the front, sometimes at the back. It was incredibly difficult for him to drive at the limit. But he handled it perfectly. That was also the master plan. We said you have to overtake someone at the start and then gradually see if it works. But it was certainly the toughest race this year."