Marko Attributes Verstappen's Incident with Russell to Emotions

Red Bull motorsport advisor Dr. Helmut Marko has offered insight into Max Verstappen's contentious final laps at the Spanish Grand Prix, suggesting emotions played a significant role in the collision with George Russell. The reigning world champion finished the race in third place, having initially pursued a three-stop strategy that seemed promising before a late safety car period bunched the field. The restart proved challenging, with Verstappen briefly losing a position to Charles Leclerc exiting the final corner. Following the restart, Verstappen became embroiled in a battle with Mercedes driver George Russell. Red Bull instructed Verstappen to yield a position to Russell. According to Marko, the internal discussion weighed the risks, concluding a 50-50 situation had occurred shortly after the safety car, making the impact of a potential 10-second penalty significant. Despite initial hesitation and voicing a protest, Verstappen was told to hand the position back. The attempt to yield the position proved complicated. With just three laps remaining, Verstappen appeared to slow at Turn 5, but then unexpectedly accelerated as Russell moved alongside on the outside, resulting in contact between the two cars. Verstappen eventually allowed Russell past later in the lap at Turn 11. Race stewards investigated the Turn 5 incident and ultimately handed Verstappen a 10-second time penalty for causing a collision. While the penalty did not alter his third-place finish due to the gaps behind, it highlighted the turbulent end to his race. Reflecting on the Turn 5 clash, Marko expressed confusion regarding Verstappen's actions. "Max lifted off the throttle, so we all assumed he was letting Russell through," Marko stated. "And then suddenly he accelerated again. I don't know what kind of misjudgment or thought process was going on inside him." Marko concluded that the series of events and decisions leading up to that moment likely led to an emotional reaction from the driver. He acknowledged the incident was "unnecessary" and resulted in "a lot of points lost" over the course of the weekend's proceedings, attributing the final error to emotions simply getting the better of the four-time champion.