Redbull has proven time and time again that they have been dominating the season for a reason. With Max Verstappen ahead in the championship with over 500 points and his third world championship secured while Red Bull pre-celebrated their secured position in the constructor championship, the team has now taken to personal bets as a way to keep it interesting among themselves to win.
Many have raised issues around Red Bull however, it is only fair to give credit to the team for the exceptional job that they have done this season. Although they have struggled quite a bit with the car, especially in Singapore, Max Verstappen has still brought his team some points with a P5 finish and his first race loss.
However, with his Incredible streak this season and all the awards already won, Helmut Marko and Christian Horner both made bets on Verstappen’s qualification. As they grabbed onto various methods to continue enjoying their winning streak, Max Verstappen got his team a pole position yet again in the season.
After his qualifications, however, the driver was told about the bet by his Red Bull boss as he was heard on the radio saying, “Well done mate. You have just worn me £500 of helmet which is like getting blurred out of a stone.”
Horner on the radio to Max post qualifying:
Horner: “Well done mate. You have just won me €500 off Helmut which is like getting blood out of a stone.”
Max: “Helmut lost the bet? What world are we living in”pic.twitter.com/AyDCCNH55W
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) November 25, 2023
To that Max Verstappen replied laughing, “Helmut lost the bet? What world are we living in“
Nonetheless, the team celebrated a poll position yet again and is aiming for the last race win of the season although Max will have Charles Leclerc putting in pressure from the back.
Helmut Marko embarrassed after underestimating Max Verstappen
Red Bull’s utter dominance in the season has brought a lot of viewership and in turn, has also helped increase the popularity of Formula 1 in America. However, with winning everything that is at stake Red Bull seems to have gotten pretty bored celebrating their wins and decided to make things a lot more interesting by making personal bets on Max’s qualification.
However, Verstappen left Helmut Marko embarrassed after watching the Dutchman pull off what many couldn’t. The three-time champion who admitted to struggling with the car for the entire weekend and felt weird for grabbing the pole position anyway gave the team a great start to an inevitable win for the last race of the season.
However, Helmut Marko and Christian Horner’s bet of €500 left the Red Bull boss stumped as he had to pay back Horner for the bet.
🗣️”I should have known Max!”
Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko says he has learned never to bet against Max Verstappen again, after losing a 500 euro wager at #F1’s Abu Dhabi GP⬇️https://t.co/eyTZPYhfL6
— Autosport (@autosport) November 26, 2023
He confessed, “Christian said front row and I said no, second row. I lost it. But I’m very happy that the engineers did a fantastic job of making the right adjustments. And also that Max in the end delivered. I should have known Max!”
Although he lost the bet while Verstappen laughed at the fact that Marko lost money and underestimated him, Helmut was nonetheless, happy about a good position to start the race.