Although Red Bull and Max Verstappen have dominated the Formula One season thus far, team adviser Helmut Marko claims that the reigning champions are concerned about the Miami Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen might find it difficult to continue his run of pole positions at the Miami Grand Prix, according to Helmut Marko.
Thus far in 2024, the Dutchman has set the fastest time in each Grand Prix qualifying session. Despite not qualifying for the Sprint race in Shanghai last weekend, he managed to pass from fourth place and win the short-form race with ease.
Verstappen has won four of the last five Grands Prix, and if he hadn’t experienced a mechanical issue that prevented him from finishing in Melbourne, he probably would have completed a perfect sweep. Red Bull adviser Marko is convinced that the team has a car that is competitive at most, if not all, venues because of his consistent success.
“Five GP weekends, five different race tracks, five pole positions for Max Verstappen, four victories,” the Austrian wrote in his Speedweek column. We can fairly say that we have a car that is fast on all kinds of tracks at this point.
It is important to note that Melbourne had unusually high tire wear for Red Bull conditions. We are unsure of the precise extent to which [Sergio] Perez’s car damage played a role in this. However, the results of the long runs also point to excessive wear.
“That means that, while it is fast, there are differences depending on the road surface and route.” Additionally, Marko believes that Verstappen’s chances of qualifying in Miami the following time around may be impacted by that.
He went on: “After the competition has gotten closer, particularly in the qualifying trim, racetracks like Miami or Monaco are places where the opponents could get a little closer to us. It seems like it won’t be simple to be in pole position.
Despite this, Marko remains unconcerned and believes Verstappen will emerge victorious at the end of the weekend’s competition. “Formula 1 will next move to Florida,” he wrote. We should be competitive in Miami, too, I think. However, the weather has returned to its previous state, which is warm and muggy.
“We can observe how susceptible the tires are to variations in weather. We will fight to the death, but who is the strongest pursuer on any given day will also be crucial, and that will change based on the path.”
In the constructors’ standings, Red Bull leads nearest rival Ferrari by 40 points, and leads third-place McLaren by 99 points. Verstappen leads teammate Perez by 25 points in the drivers’ championship and is the clear favorite to win for the fourth time in a row this year.
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