F1 Today | Questionable appointment & Verstappen ponders his 2024 teammate

After a week of speculation and rumour, the F1 paddock has reconvened for the final chapter in the triple-header. Ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix, the drivers have spoken to the media. In F1 today, we summarise the most important stories from the last 24 hours.

Questionable FIA appointment 

A notable name sits among the FIA stewards during the Brazilian Grand Prix. Luciano Burti is listed as the 'national steward'. The timing of his appearance is particularly noteworthy.

Before each Grand Prix weekend, four stewards are appointed by the FIA. For the race weekend in Brazil, they are Dr Gerd Ennser, Loïc Bacquelaine, Vitantonio Liuzzi and Luciano Burti. The appearance of the last steward is particularly noteworthy. Burti is a Brazilian and former F1 driver but was recently in the news because of the rumours he published in an article.

More Marko rumours

According to Business F1 magazine, Marko has been approached by a rival F1 team. A name is not mentioned, but sources close to Marko are said to have confirmed this. Red Bull fans need not fear a Marko departure, as the Austrian is said to have politely declined the position with the other team.

The rejection has mainly to do with the reason for the rapprochement. Marko is said to believe that the rival teams mainly want information from him about Red Bull Racing rather than seeing real added value from his role within the team. Sources close to Marko, therefore, feel that Marko will retire after Red Bull Racing. See the full story here.

Verstappen ponders between Ricciardo and Perez

Daniel Ricciardo drove an impressive Grand Prix weekend in Mexico. This is in contrast to Sergio Perez, who saw his home race end at turn one. This has further fuelled rumours of a driver swap between Red Bull Racing and AlphaTauri. Max Verstappen commented. 

"If it’s Checo next year, then great. I have had a great working relationship with him, but also personally, I think he's a great guy. And if it's Daniel, then also we will get along fine, and we have a great time. F1 can be a tough sport. You're asking these kind of questions, but yeah, maybe also nothing happens," Verstappen said. See his full reaction here.

Hamilton's focus

Lewis Hamilton finished in second place at the Mexico City Grand Prix, the seven-time world champion now returns to one of his favourite tracks of the calendar at Interlagos. Mercedes have won the last two races in Brazil and seek to extend that winning run. He went on to preview the weekend. 

"I expect Red Bull to be quick. They have been quick the whole year, except for Singapore We expect the Ferraris to be quick," Hamilton responded on what he expects from the final race of the current Formula 1 triple header.

Regarding his team, Hamilton said: "I hope that our car works well here, like it did for Austin, but you could just never predict what could be bad, what could be good. So we're just trying to prepare the best way we can."