F1 News: Helmut Marko Slams Lando Norris In Bold Oscar Piastri Statement

Saajan Jogia | Aug 3, 2024

Oct 23, 2022; Austin, Texas, USA; Helmut Marko of Red Bull Racing Team holds up the World Constructors' Champions trophy after the running of the U.S. Grand Prix F1 race at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

As McLaren intensifies its challenge against Red Bull at the front, Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko has compared the two McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to determine who possesses greater mental strength.

Marko has been known for his frank opinions, mostly directed toward Red Bull drivers concerning their performances. This time though, the 81-year-old has targeted the drivers of Red Bull's closest rival, McLaren.

His comments come at a time when the Papaya outfit has been overtaking both Red Bull drivers in recent Grands Prix, marking a significant shift in the ground effect era and putting an end to Red Bull's dominance, which saw the Christian Horner-led outfit win 21 out of the 22 races in the previous season.

So far, the Milton Keynes outfit has a 50% win rate, securing 7 victories out of 14 races before the summer break. McLaren's formidable MCL38 F1 car has outperformed Red Bull on various circuits, narrowing the points gap between the two teams in the Constructors' Championship to just 42 points, with Red Bull maintaining the lead.

Marko analysed the difference in performance between the two McLaren drivers and claimed that Piastri, who "gradually closed the gap," is "mentally stronger" than Norris. The latter is running in the second position in the Drivers' Standings so far, while the former is down to fourth with a points difference of 32. Speaking to Sky Germany and as reported by PlanetF1.com, Marko said:

“I don’t know what the points difference is between the two McLaren drivers, but it seems Piastri is mentally the stronger one.

“Oscar has gradually closed the gap to Lando and is even faster at times. But we will see how the decision turns out.”

As the points gap between the two drivers narrows, McLaren CEO Zak Brown has revealed that his team will closely monitor the standings race by race to maximize their drivers' advantages. This approach may include issuing team orders during races to influence the outcome. As reported by PlanetF1.com, he told Channel 4:

“It’s very important we let both drivers race, they’re both very capable of winning races as they’ve shown.

“Obviously as we get later into the season, depending on where Lando is, if there’s areas that Oscar can help support in his quest for the championship, we also are chasing a Constructors’ Championship.

“It’ll be something that Andrea [Stella, team principal] takes a view on that’s probably a race-by-race thing. You’d never really want to compromise a big result for Oscar. Can he help him in some other ways? But I think we’ll just take it one race at a time.”