Marko shares new update about Verstappen's future at Red Bull Racing

16:18, 13 Jun

byLudo van Denderen

It was a notable statement: former Red Bull mechanic Calum Nicholas claimed in a podcast that if Max Verstappen becomes world champion in ‘25 and leaves Formula 1 afterwards. Helmut Marko responds to this statement from his former employee.

“It would be nice if the first assumption is correct. The second one is not,” is Marko's succinct response in the Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung.

Marko has long given up on the constructors' championship title. The Red Bull chief advisor also admits that it will be a tremendous task to make Verstappen champion this season - thus making the first part of Nicholas' statement come true.

“If we don't quickly catch up, the driver's championship is over. We need to be able to win on our own merit, as we did in Suzuka,” explains Marko.

Can Max Verstappen still become champion?

'Verstappen can't win in Canada'

A victory in Canada would be more than timely for Red Bull. But Marko is a realist: without issues for the McLarens, Verstappen will not cross the finish line first in Montreal.

“Purely in terms of speed: no,” says Marko. “There is not much to begin with here: there are no fast corners, there are high curbs – everything our car did not like before.”

“Perhaps the lower temperatures that are forecast could be an advantage. And in Canada is the famous Wall of Champions, where even world champions have crashed – there has always been some excitement there.”