JUNE 1, 2025

Beating McLaren in Barcelona unlikely says Marko

A podium is probably the most Max Verstappen can hope for on Sunday, Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko admits.

Especially with the front wing flexibility clampdown coming into effect in Barcelona, the team was hoping for an Imola-like performance this weekend.

I never really expected much, Verstappen, P3 in the championship and P3 on the grid ahead of the Spanish GP, told Viaplay.

Of course McLaren's wing deflected a lot, he added, "but that is also a balance thing, and you also have setup options to deal with that.

When you are as fast as they are, this is only a small part of it.

Marko, 82, admits he is also slightly disappointed.

The gap to pole position is a little bigger than we expected, said the Austrian.

At the same time, we're only a tenth of a second behind (Lando) Norris. For the race, we're maybe not optimistic about winning, but a podium finish should be possible.

Marko says the problem is still a loss of tyre grip when the temperature rises.

I don't know how we're going to solve that, he confesses.

(GMM)