Max Verstappen has been a blessing for Red Bull ever since he joined. After Sebastian Vettel left the Austrian outfit to join Ferrari in 2015, the team was in dire need of another superstar racer. Similarly, Mercedes is in a situation at present where they need another superstar to replace Lewis Hamilton. It might be a veteran or can be another superstar in the making. That was the case when the Austrian outfit managed to sign the Dutch racer. Even Mercedes was a top contender to sign the son of the most successful Dutch racer back then, Jos Verstappen. Who knew Max Verstappen would grow up to become an all-time great?
Perhaps his father knew, and Helmut Marko was the other person who believed in Max’s talent, so he convinced him to join Red Bull. Now, in 2024, Max Verstappen is not only the best Dutch racer ever but arguably the greatest of all time. At least, that’s what his records speak about his talent. Max won 34 Grands Prix from 2022 to 2023. No other racer in F1 history has a better record in a two-year time span. He has enjoyed an incredible qualifying streak so far. However, Helmut Marko recently revealed his fear that the streak might come to an end in Miami this season.
Why Max Verstappen’s Qualifying Streak Would Likely End In 2024 Miami GP?
Max Verstappen ended the 2023 season, winning an incredible 19 races. That’s a record that would be hard to beat, even for the Dutchman. Later, in 2024, the current three-time reigning champion has been unstoppable yet again. He has won four out of the first five races. In the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, Verstappen had a shocking DNF owing to a brake issue. Moreover, Max became the first F1 racer to secure five pole positions in the first five GPs of a season. It seems that it is hard to beat Max on Saturdays. But Helmut Marko fears that streak might come to an end in the upcoming GP in Miami.
According to Auto Gear, the 80-year-old senior advisor mentioned that different race track surfaces result in tire wear problems for the currently dominant Red Bull car. Moreover, Helmut Marko feels his team must look into the tire wear issues and solve them as soon as possible. On top of that, there are still a lot of races remaining, and Ferrari is right behind them. Hence, if Marko’s fears are legitimate, then they must take immediate action to fix the issue.
Nevertheless, Max Has Been Exceptionally Fast In RB20
Sometimes it is hard to figure out the real factor behind a championship success. Is it the car or the driver? In Max Verstappen’s case, that question comes up quite often. Indeed, Red Bull has successfully built the fastest and superior cars since 2022, thanks to Adrian Newey and engines from Honda. But what Max has accomplished so far, is it just because of the great car?
If the car is the biggest factor, then why has Sergio Perez not been able to achieve what his teammate has since 2021? In the 2024 season, the Dutch racer has been incredibly fast, and if it had not been for the shocking DNF in Melbourne, he would have enjoyed a clean sweep after five races. Now, only time can tell how long Max Verstappen keeps his Saturday streak going.
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