Marko expects tough race: 'Gap to Hamilton is alarming'

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17:31, 20 Nov 2021

Helmut Marko is not happy with the gap between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. The Dutchman finished half a second behind Hamilton in qualifying. Marko expects a difficult race on the circuit of Qatar.

"The gap is a bit alarming. We managed to make up for it in the first sector, where we lost a lot at the beginning, but then we fell behind again in sector two. So it's constant back and forth, the car has never been as good over a lap," Marko told Sky Germany.

'Tough and difficult race'

Verstappen was indeed fast in sector one, but lost a lot of time in the other two sectors. In the end Hamilton even managed to set three purple sectors. Marko wants to stay positive, but also knows that Mercedes are very fast.

"We remain positive though," he added. "Normally we do much better with a full tank of fuel, so I hope we can deliver a close race. Let's see what Hamilton's pace is, but it will be a tough and difficult race," said the Red Bull advisor.

Pos.	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Antonelli Kimi Antonelli	MercedesMER	156
2	Lewis Hamilton Lewis Hamilton	FerrariFER	115
3	George Russell George Russell	MercedesMER	106
4	Charles Leclerc Charles Leclerc	FerrariFER	75
5	Lando Norris Lando Norris	McLarenMCL	73
6	Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri	McLarenMCL	70
7	Max Verstappen Max Verstappen	Red Bull RacingRBR	55
8	Isack Hadjar Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RacingRBR	37
9	Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly	AlpineALP	32
10	Liam Lawson Liam Lawson	Racing BullsRCB	28
11	Franco Colapinto Franco Colapinto	AlpineALP	19
12	Oliver Bearman Oliver Bearman	HaasHAA	18
13	Arvid Lindblad Arvid Lindblad	Racing BullsRCB	14
14	Carlos Sainz Carlos Sainz	WilliamsWIL	6
15	Alexander Albon Alexander Albon	WilliamsWIL	5
16	Esteban Ocon Esteban Ocon	HaasHAA	3
17	Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto	AudiAUD	2
18	Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso	Aston MartinAST	1
19	Nico Hulkenberg Nico Hulkenberg	AudiAUD	0
20	Valtteri Bottas Valtteri Bottas	CadillacCAD	0
21	Sergio Perez Sergio Perez	CadillacCAD	0
22	Lance Stroll Lance Stroll	Aston MartinAST	0

Marko expects tough race: 'Gap to Hamilton is alarming'

'Tough and difficult race'

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