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Breaking: Red Bull Boss SLAMS ‘Stupid FIA’ in EXPLOSIVE Verstappen Ruling Controversy
Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s top advisor, has thought back on the feedback the team received after giving Max Verstappen his Formula 1 debut.
Verstappen was promoted all the way from Formula 3, where he placed third in the standings and won the Zandvoort Masters, to Red Bull’s junior squad Toro Rosso in 2015.
After getting promoted to the main team in 2016 to replace Daniil Kvyat, the Dutchman went on to have an amazing career in Formula One with Red Bull, winning the last three championships and owning the third-most wins (57). After winning three of the first four races, Verstappen has a 13-point lead over teammate Sergio Perez in the 2024 championship.
Marko calls the FIA “stupid” over Verstappen’s debut. The 26-year-old experienced his first taste of F1 equipment ten years ago this coming season in Suzuka, when he participated in FP1 with Toro Rosso at the age of just 17.
When it was revealed in August 2014 on Red Bull’s Servus TV channel that the Dutchman will be driving for Toro Rosso in 2015, rival teams and paddock commentators criticized the decision.
However, Marko said in an interview with Autosport that the choice would have been well worth the risk, and he even criticized the FIA for their response to the unexpected revelation.
We had all kinds of stuff thrown at us and were essentially labeled as insane by everyone,” he claimed. “The FIA was even stupid enough to change the whole licensing system so that no one could debut so young again.”
Prior to 2016, drivers under the age of 18 were permitted to compete in Formula One (F1); however, the FIA subsequently modified the regulations to prohibit this practice.
