Helmut Marko laments Max Verstappen “massive problem” in Bahrain

Helmut Marko revealed that a “massive problem” led to Max Verstappen’s disappointing qualifying session in the Bahrain desert Saturday night. The Dutchman could only secure P7, and will start tomorrow’s grand prix just one place behind his championship rival Lando Norris.

“It was worse than expected because we changed a few things on the car which we thought would be an improvement, then all of a sudden we had this brake problem,” Marko told reporters after the session. “It was a massive problem, they could see it on the data, but we don’t know where it came from.”

The Red Bull racing advisor said that Yuki Tsunoda, who finished P10, didn’t suffer any problems. “It was only Max’s car,” he explained.

Viewers heard Verstappen complaining on the team radio about his “terrible” brakes, however Marko said the braking issue had “nothing to do” with the car’s new set-up. “It was not a smooth qualifying, but both cars were in the top 10, so that was a good achievement,” he continued. “And without the braking problems, it would have been P3 or P4.”

Meanwhile, Marko praised Tsunoda’s Q3 performance, noting that the Japanese driver has been “going in the right direction” since his promotion to Red Bull last weekend. “His first lap was deleted [for track limits] and he still didn’t lose his nerves, he stayed calm, and he was improving continuously,” he said. “That’s what we’re expecting from him.”

The Austrian also praised rookie Isack Hadjar’s “very competitive” performance in the RB. “Points are still possible,” he said of the 20-year-old Frenchman, who will start from P12 tomorrow.

As for Liam Lawson, who was unceremoniously replaced by Tsunoda last week, Marko said he was “slowly coming up to speed.” He curtly added: “Generally that is OK.”

Photos from Bahrain GP – Practice & Qualifying