F1 News: Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko has named Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso as drivers capable of rivaling Max Verstappen.
As F1 2023 had just started, Sergio Perez showed promise with four podium finishes in a total of five initial series. He even dragged his teammate, Max Verstappen, who was leading the championship.
However, in subsequent races, the Mexican rider experienced a drop in performance. In the last three series he has never penetrated the top three zones and Verstappen is further and further ahead of the driver standings.
Red Bull Racing adviser Helmut Marko believes that Perez is indeed no match for Verstappen. He then mentioned the names of two senior riders, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso.
“Alonso and Hamilton are the ones who can follow him the most. The three are the strongest, among them Max stands out the most,” Pitpass quoted Marko as saying.
Both are known to have been on the podium twice with Max Verstappen during the 2023 F1. The first was at the 2023 Australian GP and the second was in the race two weeks ago, the Canadian GP.
Alonso himself now sits third in the standings with a total of 117 points. While Hamilton is a level below him by 15 points. They are also Perez’s closest rivals and have the chance to close the gap on Verstappen in first place.
By contrast, Verstappen is still unchallenged after claiming his 100th victory for Red Bull in Montreal. This feat gave Helmut Marko optimism before paving their home race, the Austrian GP.
“It’s more convincing to come to Austria with your 100th victory. The national anthem will be played there for the 100th time after Red Bull’s victory,” he said.
Article tags: Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Sergio Perez, Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, F1 2023
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