Jos Verstappen suffers costly loss after McLaren defeat

Jos Verstappen lost €500 to Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko in a bet over how his son would fare in qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix.

Marko successfully predicted the four-time F1 drivers' champion would set a lap time within half a second of the McLaren pair of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who locked out the front row of the grid in Melbourne. The Dutchman was just behind in third.

Verstappen's father, meanwhile, felt the deficit would be on the other side of that marker, based on how the respective teams stacked up in pre-season.

The delta between Verstappen and pole position was just under four-tenths, which underlines a not-insignificant improvement by Red Bull since the trip to the Bahrain International Circuit.

"Compared to the test days in Bahrain, we have taken a big step, because then I think the difference was at least half a second," Marko highlighted to Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf.

The 81-year-old explained his bet with former F1 driver Jos, whilst sharing that he has placed a further bet on Verstappen to claim victory at Albert Park.

"I have already won €500 from Jos Verstappen, because he thought we would indeed concede five tenths to McLaren," the Austrian said. "And for Sunday I have already bet at a betting agency on a win by Max."

Despite the still-sizeable gap to the McLarens, Marko is optimistic about how Verstappen performed against Norris and Piastri.

"I didn't think the gap with McLaren was that big either," he said. "Until the eleventh corner it was even, then they kept the tyres alive better. But Sunday everything will be different again."