Marko on Verstappen: 'He is a lot like Vettel in that respect'

Max Verstappen is well on his way to winning his second career world title this season. The Dutchman is more than a hundred points ahead of the competition and can therefore still drop several stitches. Helmut Marko is impressed by his driver, he tells Sport1.

Whereas the Dutchman was a bit restless on and off the track last season, winning the world championship in 2021 has done him good. The Austrian sees that Verstappen makes the best choice even more often as a result.

"He has gained a lot more self-confidence," he says. "For example, at Spa a very touched Jacky Ickx came up to me and proudly told me how Max approached him and had an animated conversation. The Belgian racing icon had not expected that. This also shows that Max knows a lot about the history of racing. He is a lot like Sebastian Vettel in that respect."

Ferrari were hoping to team up with Red Bull Racing to fight for the world title this season, but nothing proved to be further from the truth. Verstappen has clearly been too strong for the rival this season, which means there seems little excitement in the final race year.

Between 2010 and 2013, Red Bull won four world titles with Vettel. Although these were golden years for the German, Marko believes Verstappen's qualities are superior. "He is definitely the fastest driver Red Bull has ever had."