Helmut Marko highlights 'catastrophic' Max Verstappen risk facing Red Bull

Helmut Marko believes it would be a "catastrophe" if Max Verstappen is banned for Red Bull's home race, the Austrian Grand Prix.

Following the recent round in Spain, the four-time F1 drivers' champion is on the cusp of a suspension, after having three penalty points added to his FIA super licence for crashing into George Russell.

That takes the Dutchman up to 11 of the allowed 12 in a 12-month period, following a number of incidents in the mid-to-late stage of the 2024 F1 season with Lando Norris.

Whilst Marko ultimately does not expect the 27-year-old to miss any on-track action, he must navigate the Canadian Grand Prix without further issue to avoid the Austrian's fears coming to fruition.

The day following the grand prix at the Red Bull Ring, Verstappen's first two penalty points will be removed, bringing him down to nine. However, it is not until October that the next tranche is taken off.

When reflecting on how the 65-time grand prix winner got to this point at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Marko pointed out the numerous "bitter pills" that led to the flashpoint with Russell.

"You have to look at the overall situation," the 82-year-old wrote in his Speedweek column. "First, he was given the hard tyre even though he didn't want it.

"Then, on the first lap, there was this swerve that almost sent him flying. Next, Leclerc drove into the side of his car at a good 300 km/h. That was completely overlooked and very dangerous.

"This naturally made the atmosphere tense. Finally, there was the incident with Russell. And Max, who knows the regulations very well, said he didn't have to give up his position. But he was told he had to give it back. That was a lot of bitter pills to swallow. On top of that, Russell isn't exactly his best friend."

The stewards awarded Verstappen a 10-second time penalty for the collision with the Mercedes driver, which dropped him from fifth to tenth at the chequered flag, but the three penalty points was the more severe punishment.

Marko underlined the subsequent jeopardy now facing the Dutchman, maintaining he will be reminded that doing something "rash" in Montreal must be avoided.

"Now he can't commit any offences over the next two race weekends, and of course, he'll be told not to do anything rash," he said.

"It would be a catastrophe if he couldn't start in Austria. But we don't expect that to happen, because it's certainly not the case that Max does something wrong in every race. After Austria, the first penalty points will be removed."