Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has commended the impact Rob Marshall has had on McLaren since joining the team.
Marshall spent 17 years working with Red Bull and contributed heavily to its run of title success with Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen.
At the start of the 2024 campaign, Marshall joined McLaren and currently holds the role of chief designer during its highly competitive season which has seen it win 11 out of the 14 grands prix staged so far.
Red Bull, meanwhile, has fallen down the pecking order and has struggled for pace for much of the campaign.
Marko would not delve deep into the topic of Red Bull's potential if Marshall was still in his role, but hailed the abilities of his former colleague.
"It is a speculative question,” Marko told F1 Insider.
“McLaren has seen that he is an excellent engineer. He certainly has a big part in McLaren's success.
"But at the end of the day, at McLaren, it's like anywhere else. It's good when your positions are filled with people who have an awful lot of experience and also bring in practical knowledge."
Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris are the contenders in the title fight this year, with the duo holding a large buffer over the rest of the competition.
With 10 rounds left in the campaign, Marko suggested he expects the championship fight to be without team intervention for the rest of the year.
“As long as you are so dominant, you can stay ahead without team orders,” he said.
“I think it's very sporting that they haven't used them either.
“If it gets more exciting, then having two top drivers is definitely a disadvantage.
“But that is currently not the case with the lead McLaren has. They are not risking anything right now.”
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