Helmut Marko makes damning statement over Max Verstappen F1 title chances

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has admitted Max Verstappen's chances of winning the F1 title are slim amid McLaren's current run of form.

Verstappen has won two out of the opening nine rounds of the campaign, while McLaren has triumphed on seven occasions.

Five of the Woking-based squad's wins have come through Oscar Piastri, who currently holds a 49-point lead over Verstappen in the championship.

The Dutchman sits third in the standings behind Piastri and McLaren team-mate Lando Norris, with his points tally hurt by a 10-second time penalty at the Spanish Grand Prix that dropped him from fourth to 10th.

But the setback in Barcelona aside, Red Bull has not been able to consistently challenge McLaren through the opening phase of the season.

When asked by ServusTV if Verstappen has the car to challenge McLaren, Marko replied: “At the moment, no. I have to admit that honestly.

“He absolutely has to drive every lap at the limit now, that's the only way. You can also see how Yuki Tsunoda is struggling now, how all his team-mates have been struggling. 

“Only he can deal with this car. Our car now has a slightly wider working window. 

“If everything is right, we will be as fast as McLaren. For us, that's only once every three or four races. McLaren is just always there. That means that if we don't fix these problems, the gap will only get bigger.”

However, Red Bull is no stranger to overcoming such deficits.

In 2022, Verstappen was 46 points behind Charles Leclerc early in the campaign, while Sebastian Vettel also came back from a similar gap to clinch his third title in 2012.

"With Sebastian Vettel we were 44 points behind Alonso and we made up for that then too,” Marko added. 

“So we're not giving up yet, but it will be difficult."