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Victory for Verstappen in Belgium? Marko: "Wouldn't rule it out"
- GPblog.com
Helmut Marko sees good chances for Max Verstappen to add another haul of World Cup points to his tally. The Red Bull Racing driver has to start from 15th position because of grid penalties, but the RB18 has been so dominant this weekend that it doesn't seem to matter much.
Over one lap, it was Carlos Sainz who came closest to Verstappen's time, but the difference between the two men was already six tenths. Lewis Hamilton was almost two seconds slower than his rival in his Mercedes. It remains to be seen what the proportions are in the long runs, but it seems certain that the Red Bull car will be very competitive again.
Moreover, Verstappen and Red Bull have an important strategic advantage. "We only used one set of tyres [in Q3], we didn't use the second set at all. That means we now have two new sets of soft tyres. That should also be able to be to our advantage," Marko said. Especially in the case of safety cars towards the end of the race, an extra set of the red-cheeked rubber could be very beneficial.
Verstappen and another win?
Verstappen will have to come a long way, but we have often seen drivers from the back of the grid still manage to win a GP. Before the summer break, the Dutchman even managed it from P10 in Hungary. "It's risky and we don't want to get cocky, but I wouldn't rule it [a win] out either," concludes the Austrian team's advisor.