Helmut Marko delighted with the Ferrari duo battling: It gave Max Verstappen an easy lead
Follow Us
Max Verstappen and Helmut Marko
Max Verstappen started on pole for the third time this season, and for the second time this season in the sprint races. While the start was a bit nerve-wracking, he soon pulled away clear of the two Ferraris, who were involved in their own little squabble and slowing each other down, and finished fairly clear of Charles Leclerc, around 1.6 seconds ahead, but Leclerc had begun to catch him.
At the start of the race, Carlos Sainz overtook his teammate and went after Verstappen, who he tried to overtake on the outside at turn 3, but it did not work out and he was soon under threat from Leclerc again. Leclerc then passed him on the run down to turn 4, where he remained despite a challenge from Carlos Sainz for some laps.
Max Verstappen, meanwhile, would have felt very comfortable in the lead, especially as the Ferraris battling only hurt themselves, and solidified his advantage. It’s not implausible that had the Ferraris not been squabbling, they could have kept pace with Verstappen, and later maybe could have even caught him, but it did not work out for them that way.
Also Read: Helmut Marko: TD postponement a ‘small win’ for Red Bull
Helmut Marko pleased with the sprint race result
As reported by GPBlog, Helmut Marko was happy with the result, and sarcastically thanked Ferrari for the same with a grin. He said: “The start was a bit critical, but it was okay. Then the Ferrari’s came close through the two long straights. Thank God they fought with each other and that gave Max an easy lead of two seconds. We just managed it. We accept it gratefully,”
Max Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez, started 13th in the race after his Q3 time was deleted. He put up a good recovery drive to finish 5th, which will be his starting position tomorrow. This earned him praise from Helmut Marko, who admitted that ‘it was more than we expected.
Helmut Marko said: “It was a great race from the thirteenth starting spot. Okay, Alonso crashed out, but at least it was fifth. That is more than we expected. It’s also a much better starting position for the race on Sunday.”
Max Verstappen will be starting the race from pole position tomorrow, in a race where he and Red Bull have been very strong in recent times. Along with Alain Prost and Jo Siffert, he is the record winner of the Austrian Grand Prix, having won in 2018, 2019 and in 2021, where he also won the Styrian Grand Prix, held on the same track. He will hope to edge the other two and get the record for himself.
Stay Updated!
Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)