Marko speaks of 'unbelievable' plan Verstappen: "He insisted"

Max Verstappen distinguished himself again during qualifying for the Russian Grand Prix by being the only non-Mercedes driver on the medium tyre to qualify for Q3. An achievement that no one had seen coming on Friday.

Yet it was Verstappen who came up with this plan on Friday evening. Starting on the medium band will probably be a huge advantage this weekend, but given the speed of Mercedes in the free practice sessions, it was also assumed that only they would be able to do so. At Red Bull Racing too, that thought dominated.

"During dinner Max suddenly started talking about the idea of qualifying for Q3 with the yellow tyre. We thought yesterday that that was not possible. But he insisted and promised: If you convert the car in a specific direction, I easily end up in the top three", says Helmut Marko according to f1-insider.com.

An anecdote that not only testifies to a lot of self-confidence on the part of the Dutchman, but it also shows what a leading role he now has within the Red Bull team. The fact that this then also works out well will only reinforce that. Marko can only admire that. "It is unbelievable," he concludes.