Verstappen Mentally Stronger Than Leclerc And Norris Says Marko

Monday, 14 October 2024 at 10:50

Helmut Marko is confident that Max Verstappen will win the 2024 Drivers' Championship because his mental strength is superior to Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris's.

With two triple headers (six race weekends and nine races in total, including sprints) to go before the end of the season, Max Verstappen leads the Drivers' Championship by 52 points ahead of Lando Norris in the second place.

F1 experts are divided, offering contradictory views on which driver is in a better position to win the title. For example, the 2016 World Champion Nico Rosberg warned that he believed Norris was in a better spot than Verstappen due to his car's pace advantage.

On the other hand, the 1996 Champion Damon Hill asserted he would rather be in the Dutchman's position, as the one who is in the lead and doesn't have to risk as much.

While the 2024 season seems likely to go down to the wire, Red Bull's motorsport advisor, Helmut Marko, remains confident in his start driver.

When (and why) asked who he thinks the World Champion is going to be in the 2024 season, the 81-year-old told Motorsport Magazin:

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"Verstappen. [He's] the best; he's the fastest and above all, has the mental strength compared to Charles Leclerc who could fight for a while theoretically, and Lando Norris."

Coming into the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Leclerc lacks 86 points on Max Verstappen, and although he isn't completely out of the fight for the title, the Monegasque would need some considerable amount of luck to be able to close such a gap in six race weekends.

The biggest threat, therefore, is Norris, who has beaten Max Verstappen by more than 20 seconds in the last race in Singapore. However, Marko isn't too worried about the McLaren driver, as he suggests he isn't mentally strong enough.