MAX VERSTAPPEN SUSPICION RAISED BY MARTIN BRUNDLE SEES RED BULL SNAP AT SKY F1 PUNDIT

Helmut Marko has rubbished Martin Brundle's claim that Max Verstappen may have been trying to prove a point to his team at the Dutch Grand Prix.

When he crossed the finish line at Zandvoort, the championship leader was almost 23 seconds behind Lando Norris. It was the largest margin of victory so far this season and a statement from McLaren who are eyeing a push for both titles this season.

While it was clear that Verstappen's Red Bull was slower than Norris' machine, Sky Sports F1 pundit Brundle was not convinced that the Dutchman should have been so far down the road. After the race, he wondered aloud whether Verstappen had purposely taken his foot off the gas.

He said: "I would hazard a guess that that was not as fast as Max could go. He knew he couldn't beat Lando and dropping back a bit like that, it's going to give the factory a hurry up, isn't it? I'd be pretty sure of that."

Brundle was name-checked by Red Bull adviser Marko in his post-race column for Speedweek. In it, the Austrian said the claim wasn't true and explained the reason the team have discovered as to why Verstappen had been so far behind Norris by the time he finished the race.

He wrote: "Martin Brundle's assumption that Max was deliberately driving slowly is incorrect - you can't say that. But when he saw that Lando was on the move, he stopped taking risks.

"The difference to [team-mate Sergio] Perez was simply that he was driving with a different set-up. We thought that with more downforce he would slide less. But that made him even more vulnerable at top speed, and tyre wear was still high."

Red Bull are worried about McLaren's pace, especially now that the gap between them in the constructors' standings is down to just 30 points. Explaining the team's predicament, Marko went on to explain the task facing them if they are to retain their title this season.

He added: "We now have to get the balance back into the car. We are working hard, but it is difficult to say exactly when and how much will be new. We simply have to find our way back, because up until the race in Shanghai or Suzuka we had a car that was superior and optimally balanced. If we can get that back, the drivers' confidence will be back, the car will slide less and the tyre wear will be more moderate.

"So it's not so much about simply finding new parts. We need the predictability of the car that we had at the start of the season. It's also nothing to do with the set-up, it's more that something came along with the new parts that turned the balance into a negative one. We'll see how it goes in Monza, of course I expect McLaren to be strong again. But I hope that we can become more equal and fight for the win, because in Zandvoort you have to admit that we were outclassed."

2024-08-29T14:08:21Z dg43tfdfdgfd