Helmut Marko has issued a challenge to Mercedes that he believes could benefit Red Bull – more success from Lewis Hamilton.The seven-time world champion enjoyed his best result of the season during the Spanish GP. He finished third in Barcelona – his first podium of the campaign.Red Bull chief Marko wants to see him on the podium more often throughout the season so he can challenge Max Verstappen’s main rival for the title. McLaren’s Lando Norris sits second in the Driver Standings and 69 points behind the reigning champion.Hamilton in the meantime sits eighth, with his Mercedes teammate George Russell just one place higher.
The latter finished third in Canada and followed that up with P4 in Barcelona.And Marko wants that to continue from the pair in an effort to help his side. Writing for Speedweek ahead of the Austrian GP, Marko said: “Another challenge awaits us in Spielberg. Max always has a chance of winning, but we will spend a weekend there in sprint format, and that means that we only have one session to set up the car.“Recently, however, we had always needed all three practice sessions to bring the car halfway into balance. If this problem persists, then this could make life difficult for us.
And last year came the resurrection of McLaren at the Red Bull Ring.“There they brought their upgrade and from there they were quick. However, Max drives practically flawlessly, thank God Lando can’t do that yet, but he remains our main competitor.“I therefore hope that Mercedes will become stronger and be the second strongest force for a while, which would certainly help us with a view to the World Championship.”Marko’s Mercedes request comes amid Hamilton’s controversial comments about teammate Russell. He claimed that he may not get the advantage over his teammate in qualifying due to Russell using the team’s new front wing.
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