Marko relieved about Verstappen moment: 'Thank God it worked out'

A number of Formula 1 drivers, including Max Verstappen, have criticised the various red flags shown during the Australian Grand Prix. Helmut Marko echoes his driver's words, calling the FIA's decisions "borderline".

Marko has reservations about the FIA's handling of the F1 race in Melbourne. He called the decisions of the race committee, which waved the red flag on three occasions, "borderline". Moreover, he saw safety risks arising because of low tyre temperatures.

"The safety car drove very slowly. As a result, the tyres cooled down," Marko explained to ServusTV. That his fears were justified was shown by the chaotic restart in the closing stages of the race. This saw several drivers eliminated and the race had to be stopped almost immediately for the third time.

"And there were different tyre compounds. Some had a new set of soft, some used, some none at all. I think that was part of the reason why there were so many collisions," the Red Bull Racing consultant added.

Verstappen initially seemed to drive towards victory unchallenged, but the late restart seemed to put his victory in jeopardy. "It was a bit of a nail-biter because two of our starts were not exactly optimal. On the third, decisive start, thank God it worked out," Marko said with relief.

"Once we were in front, it was sovereign. Sergio Perez also got the maximum of it. We were expecting a seventh or sixth place," the Austrian continued. Perez crossed the finish line sixth but was promoted to fifth after Carlos Sainz's penalty. "That's the optimum," said Marko about Perez's result.