Verstappen regains motivation: Marko reveals interest in the F1 title

AUSTIN, Texas – Red Bull Motorsport advisor Helmut Marko has revealed that Max Verstappen, the current champion, experienced a decrease in his interest in defending the title earlier this year. However, Marko assures that the Dutch driver has regained his motivation and is fully focused on the pursuit of his fifth Formula 1 championship. Verstappen, after his outstanding performance in the sprint race of the United States Grand Prix, where he reduced the gap with the championship leader, Oscar Piastri, to 55 points, and by securing pole position for Sunday’s race, remains a strong contender for this year’s title. The outstanding performance in Austin comes after two consecutive victories and a second place in the last three races. Red Bull has managed to optimize the performance of its 2025 single-seater with improvements and adjustments in the configuration.

Max, at a time when we were not competitive, I would say he lost a bit of interest. He was more interested in GT racing, so to keep him in a good mood, I would talk to him about Nurburgring and things like that.

Helmut Marko

Marko believes that Verstappen, at one point, lost interest in the fight for the title due to the lack of competitiveness. However, the Red Bull advisor points out that the four-time champion returned from a victory in a GT3 race at Nurburgring in September with renewed energy and motivation to compete for the title in F1. Marko explained that Verstappen’s approach changed, and now, with the car working and after his success at Nurburgring, the driver has regained his motivation, enjoying F1. Marko highlights that Verstappen looks smiling, which is indicative of his positive state of mind.

When asked about Verstappen’s chances in the fight for the championship with six races remaining, Marko replied that it is premature to make predictions, but the weekend looks promising. Verstappen reduced Piastri’s lead in the championship by gaining eight points thanks to his victory in Saturday’s sprint race, and subsequently, achieved pole position for Sunday’s race, surpassing Lando Norris. Regarding whether he is considering his title possibilities, the defending champion pointed out that it is not the time to focus on the points gap, but on each race. His focus is to give his best in each competition. He highlighted that, although the victory in the sprint was positive, he is still looking to improve his pace to be successful in Sunday’s race.