Marko: ''Then they would have said, 'Do Hamilton a favour'''

Red Bull Racing and Mercedes will battle it out for the world title this year. This will cause tension on the track, but also clearly off the track. Helmut Marko is not a man who holds back.

Marko hunts with his team

Mercedes have been lonely at the top of Formula 1 for the past seven years, never really under any pressure. In 2021, with Red Bull Racing there is finally a team that seems to be really close, but they now need to push on too. Mercedes' dominance was a handsome achievement, but not best for the sport.

''We want to be world champions with Max Verstappen, but Mercedes built a robust and powerful engine. That has been a key factor in their success in recent years, but with Honda we are now at a similar level. There is apositive and optimistic atmosphere within the team,'' Marko said to Sport1.de.

Red Bull versus Mercedes

However, this battle means that Marko and Toto Wolff are now clashing more frequently. ''We defend our position and express our opinion. Sometimes we feel that Toto is too concerned about us or Formula 1 as a whole. It goes without saying that we think about our interests.''

Marko lashed out at 'the Mercedes camp' after qualifying, where he felt they had instructed Lando Norris not to give Verstappen an advantage. That wouldn't have happened with Hamilton behind him, Marko argues now. With a face of steel he says: ''Then they would have said, 'Do Hamilton a favour'', the Austrian concludes.