Marko Downplays Red Bull's Dominance Despite 'Enormous' Early Pace
Feb.22 - Even embattled team boss Christian Horner was all smiles in Bahrain on Wednesday as Red Bull's new and radical car for 2024 stunned every other Formula 1 rival on the opening day of pre-season testing.
"Maybe they didn't copy the latest model," smiled Dr Helmut Marko as the nearest challenger, McLaren's Lando Norris, failed to get even within a second of Max Verstappen's best laptime.
Frederic Vasseur denies Ferrari is among those who have 'copied' the now-defunct 2023 Red Bull, but he also admits the gap remains "enormous".
"We haven't started copying anyone," the Frenchman insisted. "If you do, you're always one step behind."
Nonetheless, if Red Bull's 2024 pace is real, the rivals are now a step behind in terms of the basic concept, as innovative air intakes on either side of Verstappen's cockpit emerged on Wednesday.
"We knew that the others would copy us," Red Bull's technical guru Adrian Newey said. "If we had simply developed last year's car a bit more, it would not have been enough."
Top Red Bull consultant Marko, meanwhile, tried to play down Red Bull's early testing pace, insisting the gap to the rest of the field "is not as big as it looks".
"We were the only ones who took to the track with fresh medium tyres in the cool evening hours," he told Auto Motor und Sport. "That explains the big jump we made in the afternoon."
Marko thinks the actual gap to the others, however, is "three tenths". Mercedes' chief engineer Andrew Shovlin surmised: "There's almost nothing between Ferrari, McLaren, Aston Martin and us.
"But one thing is clear - Red Bull are ahead."
George Russell said the new-concept Mercedes, having ironically scrapped the philosophy that Red Bull has now adopted, is nicer to drive.
"But if it's slow, that won't help us," admitted team boss Toto Wolff. "The base we have now is better than last year, but the Red Bull is fast."
Marko beamed: "Radical change is always a risk. Look at Mercedes - they had problems, while our car worked from the first lap. That's why we're all smiling."
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Dr. Frankenstein has this grating habit of presuming he is somehow the Red Bull spokesman. Stepping up to the dias, with his cape fluttering gently behind him, he presents windy arguments for this and that, trying to distract and redirect. He is obnoxious and deserves to be unceremoniously shown the door.
In the meantime, Adrian Newey continues to put four-wheeled engineering miracles on the pavement that when driven correctly, reward Red Bull with Drivers' and Constructors' Championships.
Surely, the Red Bull Board of Director's is keenly aware of the value each member of the Red Bull F1 team brings to the table. I suspect that they may be patiently biding their time to rid themselves of Dr. Frankenstein at an appropriate moment.
What is the problem with what Marko says.
I don't understand the vitriol toward him.
He is only saying what is blindingly obvious.
Clearly a game of cat and mouse is going on.times in testing show Mer and Fer to be potentially as fast as RB and all the fast cars also have good reliability.
Clearly AN likes the old Mer car and thinks he can release its potential but at the moment ( early days) the times are a straight reversal of last year. Horner troubles could be a smokescreen, he seems remarkably unconcerned.
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