Marko finds gap to Mercedes misleading: 'We were doing long runs'

Mercedes closed Friday in Montreal with the two fastest times, but the timesheet is somewhat misleading, according to Helmut Marko. Red Bull Racing closed the only real free practice of the day with sixth and eighth times.

"I think the gap is a bit misleading," Marko told ServusTV. "The track got much faster towards the end. Then we did a long run." At the time when most teams were doing their long runs, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell went out for their flying lap.

"We still have some work to do with the car, it is too unsettled," Marko continued. "The long run was slightly better, but Leclerc was also very fast. At least as fast as us. So there is still work to do. We all expect that hundredth win and apparently that has created extra pressure."

"So we were slightly surprised that we were a bit off, especially in terms of driving. Mercedes was obviously faster, but I fear Ferrari will be even stronger here. You could see that. They were more or less equal to us. Leclerc's long run was particularly impressive," Marko said.