Red Bull Racing Team Consultant Dr Helmut Marko looks on during the Sprint ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Brazil at Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace on November 04, 2023 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool
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F1 News: Norris ‘a lot better’ than Piastri in F1 test – Marko

Andrew Maitland

(GMM) Dr Helmut Marko says Red Bull is not overly worried, even though he openly admits McLaren is heading into the 2025 season as the obvious favorite.

Marko, 81, sounded more optimistic about Red Bull’s progress over the winter during the pre-season test in Bahrain last week. But he has now admitted to RTL in Germany: “The current favorite is clearly McLaren.

“In my opinion, it will be a three-way or four-way battle between McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari and us,” he added. “Although, if you look at the test results, McLaren already has a lead.

“That was the case in both the short and long runs.”

However, Marko insists Red Bull is neither panicking over nor “disappointed” with the new car.

“We have made progress, but we are two to three tenths behind in the long run. We absolutely don’t have to worry yet, but it would have been nice if our developments and innovations had worked right away.

“We have taken a step – McLaren is just the favorite at the moment,” said Marko. “Max (Verstappen) did not do a long run on Friday, and on Wednesday we were still at the same level as McLaren in that respect.

“I would say that on Friday the deficit was about two tenths because the tire degradation was also a lot better at McLaren.”

Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB21 on track during day three of F1 Testing at Bahrain International Circuit on February 28, 2025 in Bahrain, Bahrain. (Photo by Steven Tee/LAT Images for Pirelli)
Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB21 on track during day three of F1 Testing at Bahrain International Circuit on February 28, 2025 in Bahrain, Bahrain. (Photo by Steven Tee/LAT Images for Pirelli)

And while McLaren is the favorite, Marko also says the pecking order at the Woking based team is also clear. “You have to say that Lando Norris is the favorite.

“It is clear that he looked a lot better than (Oscar) Piastri in Bahrain. The main thing is that they can take points from each other and that we profit from that.”

Indeed, McLaren is heading into another season insisting that both Norris and Piastri will both be permitted to charge for the drivers’ title.

“For us, Max is the obvious number 1, but I don’t think Piastri will agree to be number 2,” Marko said. “This was already evident last season – on certain tracks, he was on the same level, if not faster than Lando.

“The advantage of McLaren is that they again have a car that is very good with any type of tire.”