Dr Helmut Marko has conceded McLaren’s dominance heading into 2025 however says Crimson Bull stays unfazed regardless of trailing in Bahrain’s pre-season check.
Dr Helmut Marko has conceded McLaren‘s dominance heading into 2025 however says Red Bull stays unfazed regardless of trailing in Bahrain’s pre-season check.
“The present favorite is clearly McLaren,” the 81-year-old Crimson Bull adviser informed RTL in Germany.
“For my part, will probably be a three-way or four-way battle between McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari and us. Though, in case you take a look at the check outcomes, McLaren already has a lead. That was the case in each the quick and lengthy runs.”
Marko tempered any alarm from the Crimson Bull camp, although. “We now have made progress, however we’re two to 3 tenths behind in the long term,” he stated. “We completely haven’t got to fret but, however it could have been good if our developments and improvements had labored straight away.
“We now have taken a step—McLaren is simply the favorite for the time being.” He famous: “Max (Verstappen) didn’t do a future on Friday, and on Wednesday we had been nonetheless on the similar stage as McLaren in that respect. I’d say that on Friday the deficit was about two tenths, as a result of the tyre degradation was additionally so much higher at McLaren.”
Inside McLaren, Marko sees a transparent hierarchy.
“You must say that Lando Norris is the favorite,” he stated. “It’s clear that he regarded so much higher than (Oscar) Piastri in Bahrain. The primary factor is that they will take factors from one another and that we revenue from that.”
But he acknowledged Piastri’s potential, which Marko thinks is a profit for Crimson Bull: “For us, Max is the plain no 1, however I do not suppose Piastri will conform to be quantity 2. This was already evident final season—on sure tracks, he was on the identical stage, if not quicker than Lando.”
Marko praised McLaren’s edge: “The benefit of McLaren is that they once more have a automobile that is excellent with any sort of tyre.”
