Marko warns Verstappen to be careful fighting Leclerc in Italian GP

Helmut Marko has warned Max Verstappen to be careful if he gets an opportunity to fight with Charles Leclerc during the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix.

Leclerc qualified on pole position with Verstappen in second, although the Red Bull driver will be taking a grid penalty for a new Internal Combustion Engine.

He is set to start seventh, but in having won the last four races, he has shown substantially better race pace than Ferrari - meaning he is still in contention for the win.

However, Marko has cautioned his lead driver from taking any unnecessary risks to pass Leclerc if the race situation allows.

"Of course we will see if we can attack Leclerc, but we do not do that with risks," Marko explained to ORF.

"If it [passing Leclerc] can't be done without risks, then we just keep the position and we go for P2."

Verstappen has a 109 point championship lead with just seven races remaining in the 2022 season.

The veteran advisor was also full of compliments for Ferrari and their straight-line speed on their home circuit.

"Ferrari have developed an incredible top speed - they must have really pushed their engine to the limit.

"We lost a of time in sector one [in qualifying] compared to third practice, but it is no drama."