Helmut Marko Exposes Red Bull F1 Issues After Max Verstappen Loses Home Win

Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen was unable to match the pace of McLaren’s Lando Norris, finishing a distant 20 seconds behind the race winner during the Dutch Grand Prix.

Despite his second-place finish, Verstappen’s performance has ignited serious concerns about Red Bull’s competitiveness, with motorsport advisor Helmut Marko voicing significant frustrations.

Despite a strong start that saw Verstappen initially outpace Norris into the first corner, the Red Bull RB20 soon showed signs of struggle, particularly with tire wear. Verstappen, who had taken an early lead, began to lose grip, which was evident in his difficulties maintaining speed and handling through critical turns like Turn 10.

Lando Norris, who had momentarily lost the lead at the start, managed to regain and extend his position. By the race’s midpoint, Norris had overtaken Verstappen and established a lead that only widened as the laps ticked down.

Speaking to Sky Deutschland, as quoted by GP Blog, Helmut Marko did not mince words about the team’s performance, stating:

“We couldn’t keep pace at all. We suffered a lot of tyre wear. A 1:13.8 on the last lap without DRS says a lot. There is a lot to work on and think about. The big problem was tyre wear.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner also commented to the media after the race:

“Having got the lead, you suddenly start to think. He managed to break the DRS. But then it was very clear that suddenly Lando from lap 5, 6 onwards started to come back quite hard.

“We just didn’t have the pace today. With hindsight, the gamble that we made with the more downforce perhaps wasn’t the best route. And looking at Checo’s pace, it looked like it was easier for him in the second half of the race. McLaren were very quick today. We’ve got work to do to get more pace.”

2024 Dutch Grand Prix Results

1. Lando Norris – Fastest Lap
2. Max Verstappen
3. Charles Leclerc
4. Oscar Piastri
5. Carlos Sainz
6. Sergio Perez
7. George Russell
8. Lewis Hamilton
9. Pierre Gasly
10. Fernando Alonso
11. Nico Hulkenberg
12. Daniel Ricciardo
13. Lance Stroll
14. Alex Albon
15. Esteban Ocon
16. Logan Sargeant
17. Yuki Tsunoda
18. Valtteri Bottas
19. Zhou Guanyu
20. Kevin Magnussen

2024 F1 Constructors’ Standings

(As of the Dutch Grand Prix)

1. Red Bull- 434 points
2. McLaren – 404 points
3. Ferrari – 370 points
4. Mercedes – 276 points
5. Aston Martin – 74 points
6. RB – 34 points
7. Haas – 27 points
8. Alpine – 13 points
9. Williams – 4 points
10. Sauber – 0 points

2024 F1 Drivers’ Standings

(As of the Dutch Grand Prix)

1. Max Verstappen – 295 points
2. Lando Norris – 225 points
3. Charles Leclerc – 192 points
4. Oscar Piastri – 179 points
5. Carlos Sainz – 172 points
6. Lewis Hamilton – 154 points
7. Sergio Perez – 139 points
8. George Russell – 122 points
9. Fernando Alonso – 50 points
10. Lance Stroll – 24 points
11. Nico Hulkenberg – 22 points
12. Yuki Tsunoda – 22 points
13. Daniel Ricciardo – 12 points
14. Pierre Gasly – 8 points
15. Oliver Bearman – 6 points
16. Kevin Magnussen – 5 points
17. Esteban Ocon – 5 points
18. Alex Albon – 4 points
19. Zhou Guanyu – 0 points
20. Logan Sargeant – 0 points
21. Valtteri Bottas – 0 points