Helmut Marko has singled out Max Verstappen's antics during the Hungarian Grand Prix as a blot on the world champion's 2024 copybook. Verstappen secured his fourth world title in Las Vegas after Red Bull overcame an alarming slump in form from the RB20, with the nadir coming at the Italian Grand Prix, where Verstappen could only finish sixth. Two races prior, the Dutchman had been forced out wide at Turn 1 by the McLaren pair of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, with the strategy Red Bull then put Verstappen on forcing him to overtake the likes of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton for a podium. He passed Leclerc, but when attempting to clear Hamilton, Verstappen got deep on the brakes at Turn 1, collided with the Mercedes and tipped himself into the air. It came after Verstappen had spent some time during the nights of the weekend racing online, leading to claims he was tired, especially after a radio outburst against engineer Gianpiero Lambiase. He would eventually finish fifth behind Piastri, Norris, Hamilton and Leclerc, with motorsport advisor Marko conceding the champion had lost a little motivation. "He always shows that he uses his brain and he doesn't give up. In Hungary, however, he was frustrated and perhaps lost motivation a bit," Marko told de Telegraaf. "He did not show there that he is the team leader he is." However, the Austrian then praised Verstappen's galvanising leadership to help turn the form of the car around. "He showed up at the factory to help, he indicated to the engineers that as long as he did not have confidence in the car he could not go to the limit. "That commitment is incredible, so he really proved that he is that team leader. "Everything went wrong at Monza, from the strategy to the setups and the pit stops. That, in my view, is also why this has been Max's best year."

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