Marko raving about Verstappen, less so about Perez: 'A stupid mistake'

Despite the fact that Red Bull Racing was not identified by everyone as the top favourite ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend, Max Verstappen proved otherwise. Challenged by Fernando Alonso and Charles Leclerc, the reigning world champion managed to secure pole position for himself, much to the delight of Helmut Marko.

The differences were extremely small, with the entire top 10 within just eight tenths of a second in Q3 and the top three within a tenth. For a while it looked like Alonso would run away with pole position, but the Aston Martin driver lost time in the third sector. And let that be the very sector in which Verstappen won by three tenths....

Marko enthusiastic about Verstappen, less so about Perez

"When Max was already two tenths behind Alonso on his last lap, we thought it wasn't going to happen. But the third sector is where our strength lies," Marko said proudly in conversation with the German branch of Sky Sports. "Max was absolutely on the limit, he drove perfectly and got the most out of the car."

He is less enthusiastic about Sergio Perez 's performance. The Mexican eliminated himself as early as Q1 by putting his RB19 into the wall, much to Marko's dismay. "When you have a car like that, you shouldn't be out in Q1. That was a stupid mistake on his part. Maybe he was thinking too much about the championship," reads the Red Bull adviser's harsh verdict.