In an interview, Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko commented on rumors of disagreements with one of the company’s leaders, Oliver Mintzlaff, and summed up the Jeddah race weekend.
Q: After the Jeddah race, the Red Bull press office canceled a pre-announced interview with you on Austrian television. Does this mean that you can no longer communicate freely with the press?
Helmut Marko: Don’t worry, I won’t be limited. I will always say what I think. Always.
Q: Could the cancellation of the interview be a response to your unflattering comment about Oliver Mintzlaff following Manchester City’s 0-7 defeat of RB Leipzig?
Helmut Marko: In Germany they exaggerated this story. I have a good relationship with Mr. Mintzlaff and we exchange ideas regularly. But I want to be independent.
Question From the point of view of sports results, there is nothing wrong with Red Bull Racing…
Helmut Marko: We can be happy that Max Verstappen finished second behind Sergio Perez after starting from fifteenth place in Jeddah.
Q: However, Max was pissed off about a technical glitch during qualifying and didn’t come to the briefing with the engineers. Right?
Helmut Marko: Max has just had a bad flu. Did you see what he looked like when he got out of the cockpit? He felt unwell and wanted to go to bed as soon as possible.
Question But on Sunday Max was fast enough and on the last lap he took the best lap from Perez. Is it possible that the team will face the same confrontation as Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton?
Helmut Marko: Overall, both riders complied with the team’s demands. With five laps to go they were told to attack with full force. Perez is also a good tactician, so he tried to get the best circle on the last lap, but made a mistake in the first sector.
We have the two best riders and we need to create as big a lead as possible before wind tunnel restrictions start to take their toll.
Q: What do you think about the situation with Fernando Alonso, when he was fined first and then returned to third?
Helmut Marko: The jacking incident happened on lap 20. It’s just ridiculous that the stewards waited for the finish line and award ceremony and only then announced a 10 second penalty. And even funnier that the fine was later withdrawn.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
