Red Bull top advisor Helmut Marko couldn’t hide his satisfaction with Max Verstappen‘s third-place finish in Australia.
The gap to McLaren turned out smaller than they feared, giving the team a boost of confidence heading into race day.
“Compared to the test days in Bahrain, we’ve taken a big step, because back then I think the difference was at least half a second,” Marko told De Telegraaf.
He even made some money on the result.
“I’ve already won 500 euros from Jos Verstappen, as he thought we would indeed concede five tenths to McLaren,” Marko revealed with a hint of pride.
The veteran advisor isn’t done betting either. “For tomorrow, I’ve already placed a bet at a betting shop on Max winning,” he added.
Red Bull managed to close the performance gap to their rivals from Woking, with Marko claiming they were matching McLaren’s pace until Turn 11.
The prediction of rain for race day likely boosted Marko’s confidence in placing that bet. After all, Verstappen showed his incredible wet-weather skills with that amazing victory at last year’s Sao Paulo GP.
## Verstappen Less Confident
While Marko was upbeat, Verstappen himself seemed less convinced about their progress.
The Dutchman admitted the gap was still too large for his liking and expressed surprise at finishing as high as third.
Still, he acknowledged the team had made positive changes since Friday’s sessions. Just a day earlier, Verstappen had set the bar remarkably low, saying he’d be happy just to make it into Q3.
The contrast between Verstappen’s cautious assessment and Marko’s optimism sets up an intriguing race day scenario as Red Bull tries to maintain its dominance against a resurgent McLaren team.
