Red Bull's Marko hits back at Aston Martin rumours

Jan.23 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has hit back at wild rumours suggesting Aston Martin is making a serious bid to lure Max Verstappen.

The reports mentioned extreme sums of up to and beyond $1 billion, hot on the heels of Toto Wolff’s similar interest in signing Verstappen throughout 2024.

“That’s all well and good,” Red Bull’s F1 advisor Marko told Sport Bild, “but Max has a contract with us until the end of 2028.”

Also almost certainly true, however, is that certain clauses in the quadruple world champion’s current contract would allow him to escape to another team.

“I don’t make any statements about the content of the contract,” Marko insisted, “but we are confident that we can give Max a good car.

“Based on the data, our engineers are optimistic. And I also know how loyal and grateful Max is to Red Bull. That’s why he will be a Red Bull driver in 2026 – and as a five-time world champion as well,” the 81-year-old smiled.

Nonetheless, the Austrian admits that Red Bull will face another tough challenge in 2024. “McLaren and Ferrari both had the best foundations in 2024,” said Marko.

The disadvantage for those teams, he added, is that they do not have Verstappen at the wheel.

“Both teams can build on their strong foundations now,” said Marko, “because they did well on most circuits last season. But none of their drivers stood out for me.”

Marko pointed out Lando Norris’ mental weaknesses last year, and Oscar Piastri’s lack of consistency. As for Ferrari’s 2025 lineup, he told Sport Bild: “(Charles) Leclerc is good in qualifying, but he makes a lot of mistakes in the races.

“And Lewis (Hamilton) still has the speed, but over a whole season? I have my doubts about that,” added Marko. “Even if he has a good Ferrari and we only give Max a mediocre Red Bull, I would put my money on Max.

“And if Hamilton’s start at Ferrari does not go as he had hoped, he should be careful not to get into a negative spiral like he did at Mercedes.

“No one can hold a candle to Max,” Marko continued. “Not Lewis, not Lando Norris. He gets 1 to 2 tenths out of the car per lap that no other driver can get. Now it’s up to us to build him a car that lets him compete for victories, not only sometimes but consistently.

“Our working window must become larger,” he continued.