Max Verstappen, a two-time Formula One winner, admitted that Helmut Marko forbade him from competing in the Red Bull Formula Nurburgring later this year.
Sebastian Vettel, a four-time champion who recently announced his retirement, and Daniel Ricciardo will compete on the storied track in September, it was announced earlier this week. Discover Red Bull blocks Max Verstappen from fulfilling racing goal.
During the media day preceding the Canadian Grand Prix, Verstappen, who currently holds a 53-point lead in the drivers’ standings, was questioned about whether he would have been interested in it. The Dutch driver said Marko had dissuaded him from competing since he knew he would have given it his all.
Verstappen explained;
“I wanted to do it, but I was not allowed by Helmut. He knew that I would try and go to the limits. I would have loved to do it.
“I didn’t want to start unnecessary issues. I heard this thing was coming up, and Helmut was sitting at the table when it came up, and he said: ‘No, no, no, you’re not doing that!’
When asked he would have gone for a lap record on the iconic circuit,
Verstappen responded;
“I would have definitely given it a go. But you need not the demo tyres and some proper tyres, which is not allowed.
“It’s also risky to drive here, it just depends on how you hit a barrier. But that’s normally not the plan, of course. But hopefully one day I can do it.
“Ideally, that would have been amazing in an F1 car, but if it’s not allowed in an F1 car, then maybe one day in a GT3 car.”
Because Verstappen has dominated the season, the chance of him colliding at the Nurburgring was too great. Part of Marko’s responsibility is to ensure that the drivers don’t take any unnecessary risks.
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