Helmut Marko Pokes Fun At Red Bull RB20 'Downgrades'

Saajan Jogia | Aug 22, 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

Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko has made fun of Red Bull's mid-season upgrade package by calling it a "downgrade." His comments come after the RB20 F1 car no longer displayed dominating performance following an upgrade, causing it to struggle against McLaren's MCL35 and the W15 from Mercedes.

Marko has been known for his bold statements about Red Bull's drivers, but this time, the car has received the brutal end of his comments. His observations are justified, given the disappointing results following the significant Hungarian Grand Prix update that was supposed to give the RB20 a much-needed boost. Despite these efforts, Oscar Piastri claimed a commanding victory, while Max Verstappen could only manage a fifth-place finish.

A similar story unfolded at Spa-Francorchamps, where Lewis Hamilton took the victory while Verstappen finished fourth. Although Verstappen's starting position of 11th, due to an engine penalty, partly explains his result, it is worth noting that in previous seasons, he has still managed to win races despite similar setbacks.

Thus far, Verstappen has won 7 out of the 14 Grands Prix, compared to last season's 19 out of 22 race wins. Marko believes the upgrades are not working on the RB20 as expected, but he remains optimistic about the Dutch GP. The 81-year-old advisor told Kleinezeitung.at:

"I would rather call them downgrades.

"But I am optimistic. We were recently beaten well below our value. Qualifying will be particularly important in Zandvoort. Together with McLaren, we are certainly among the favorites."

Red Bull's pace at the start of the season was outstanding, as Verstappen and Sergio Perez delivered 1-2 finishes in the first five Grands Prix of the season. Did a modification on the RB20 cause the pace to drop? After the Chinese Grand Prix, Perez's pace dropped to the point where he struggled to finish in the points, causing him to nearly lose his Red Bull seat.

Following the Belgian GP, team principal Christian Horner stressed the need for a thorough analysis of the data to identify the issues that hampered Perez's performance at Spa. Despite securing pole position in qualifying and showing signs of a return to form, he ultimately finished a disappointing seventh in the Grand Prix. He told RacingNews365.com:

"Checo's [Sergio Perez] had a tough run over the last few races.

"What's so confusing for us is that the season started so well with him and then tailed off.

"He did a super job in qualifying. Obviously, we need to go through and understand the issues in the race. We've got the time to do that and analyze that and work with him."

He added:

"Starting on the front row, our objective really was - pre-race we felt that third and fifth would be achievable.

"We achieved the fifth, but we didn't achieve the third. So we obviously need to go through the data, understand where his [Perez's] loss of pace was."