dr. Helmut Marko has to admit now that Max Verstappen has his first world title in his pocket, he has become a better version of himself. The Austrian saw a burden fall from the shoulders of the Dutchman when he managed to take the championship.
The world championship of the 24-year-old Limburger was not only his goal. It was also the life’s work of father Jos, who, after his own Formula 1 career, has devoted everything to his son. Winning the title is not for many drivers and talent alone is not enough in Formula 1 to seize a championship. Marko needs to be with Autohebdo therefore admit that the hard lessons of father Jos have worked out well.
‘Verstappen project’
The 79-year-old Austrian talks about the apparently calm title holder: “Max has always had to deal with a lot of pressure from Jos. And this still happens, but it is a lot less now. All this has made him more mature. 24 years old and a young world champion.” In the current championship, the Limburger has a lead of 38 points and although we still have eleven Grands Prix to go, the chances for the Red Bull driver look good. Ferrari still seems to struggle with the engine and the title holder continues to collect his points, even on a day when the car is not the fastest. According to Marko, the fact that Verstappen is not swearing and ranting on a day when it doesn’t work is also due to the fact that the Dutchman simply already has a title in his pocket. “The rest is just a bonus,” he says.
Title fight 2021
The advisor himself also enjoyed last year’s fight, besides that he is happy that his team managed to break the dominance of Mercedes. “We have suffered a lot in all those years. Honda has put a lot of effort into providing a quality engine. And then we won the title with a member of our junior team and we beat a seven-time world champion. That was of course the best moment,” he said. he acknowledge.
