In 2024, the Formula 1 world champion will also be called Max Verstappen. Whether the Dutchman can win his fifth world title in a row next year also depends largely on his material. Helmut Marko has now made the Red Bull employees particularly responsible.
The fact that Max Verstappen will also be one of the best drivers in Formula 1 in the 2025 season is not up for debate. The big question is: How good or bad will his material be? In 2024, Red Bull only provided him with the best car at the beginning of the season. Over the course of the year, McLaren and Ferrari initially passed the bulls, and towards the end they even overtook them.
This could become a problem next season, especially since Helmut Marko explained in the “Kleine Zeitung” interview: “The regulations are in their last year next season, so there will hardly be any updates.” So will the balance of power remain the same as it was in the last races in 2024? Not necessarily.
Marko admits: Ferrari and McLaren were stronger
“The cars of this era have their pitfalls, especially the working window of the tires always causes problems for many teams. Sometimes you tip over completely after small changes in temperature,” Marko is convinced that the Red Bull competition will also have their problems in the coming season will have to get the most out of the cars in every race.
Nevertheless, the man from Graz also admits that Ferrari and McLaren were “clearly the strongest teams” towards the end of the season. For his racing team it is therefore a matter of developing a “wide working window” and a car that “doesn’t react so capriciously to the smallest changes”. Red Bull only managed to do this in phases last season.
If Red Bull manages to pull off this balancing act in the end, according to Marko, the team will again have a say in the fight for the World Championship because: “If we manage to do it halfway, thanks to the max factor, we will automatically be in contention for the World Championship again.”