SM
Man City vs. Spurs: 13 hrs 23 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data

Defeat to Leclerc 'a surprise' in Austria - Marko

:Headline: Defeat to Leclerc 'a surprise' in Austria - Marko:
Red Bull admits victory for championship contender Charles Leclerc in Austria came as a "surprise".
Sports Mole

Red Bull admits victory for championship contender Charles Leclerc in Austria came as a "surprise".

"I expected them to be strong," said championship leader Max Verstappen. "I just didn't expect them to be this good."

Carlos Sainz's fiery engine failure, however, was a nasty surprise for Ferrari, indicating that reliability remains a problem despite Leclerc closing the points gap to the lead to 38 points.

Dr Helmut Marko said Verstappen - who finished second at Red Bull's own circuit at Spielberg - managing to secure an extra point for the fastest lap to be "the best possible damage control".

Leclerc says Ferrari has always had the pace to challenge the Red Bulls.

"Apart from Miami, maybe, where we were a little bit down compared to Red Bull, it's been strong in the last five races," said the Monaco-born driver.

"We just couldn't put everything together. So yeah, it's great that we finally had a normal race on my side."

Nonetheless, Marko says the result on Sunday "came as a surprise".

"We had severe tyre degradation that we cannot explain," said Red Bull's top Austrian official. "Our pace and the wear on the last set of tyres were all the more astonishing.

"I hope we can work that out but we limited the damage at least. Ferrari and we are at more or less the same level all year round. It's about the little things.

"So we're not worried. It's not like we're suddenly losing the championship here," said the 79-year-old.

As for Silverstone winner Sainz's Ferrari failure, team boss Mattia Binotto thinks it is "very likely" it was the same problem as Leclerc suffered at Baku.

"Of course we're worried," the Italian admitted. "But we're working flat out on solutions that we can hopefully bring to the track soon."

Marko, meanwhile, had some criticism for Sergio Perez for his contact with Mercedes' George Russell.

"Before the start we emphasised there should be no overtaking on the outside of Turn 4 as it's not possible," Marko told Sky Deutschland.

"That was totally unnecessary."

Mercedes in general is continuing to improve, with Lewis Hamilton securing another podium.

"We're missing three tenths," said team boss Toto Wolff. "We'll keep getting on top of it with every race."

Finally, while Formula 1 as a whole slammed the behaviour of some of Verstappen's Dutch fans over the weekend, Wolff said the criticism should be carefully targeted.

"We need to be very careful that we don't put the sport that we love into a corner and say this is all racist or sexist, because it's not," he said.

F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali agreed: "The entire top three was applauded by the fans.

"That shows that the drivers are getting the respect they deserve."
body check tags ::

amp_article__489789 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2022-07-11 12:12:02:
html db last update - 2022-07-11 12:12:02 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html

Click here for more stories about Charles Leclerc

Click here for more stories about Red Bull

Share this article now:
MB
Read Next:
Binotto defends drivers after Ferrari duel
>


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Read more about Charles Leclerc Helmut Marko Max Verstappen Carlos Sainz Toto Wolff Lewis Hamilton Sergio Perez George Russell Mattia Binotto Stefano Domenicali Formula 1
Follow @SportsMole for the latest breaking news stories, and follow @sm_headlines to get every headline from Sports Mole
Recommended Next on SM
Binotto defends drivers after Ferrari duel
Chelsea targeting move for Ipswich hotshot with 'exceptional transfer metrics'
Man United 'planning stunning swap deal' for Inter's prolific striker Martinez

Page options

Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea115422113819
4Arsenal115421812619
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest115421510519
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton115421915419
7Fulham115331613318
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Aston Villa115331717018
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
11Brentford115152222016
12Bournemouth114341515015
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Leicester CityLeicester112451421-710
16Everton112451017-710
17Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
18Crystal Palace11146815-77
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves111371627-116
20Southampton11119721-144
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Chelsea targeting move for Ipswich hotshot with 'exceptional transfer metrics'

1

CT

Preview: Ipswich vs. Man Utd - prediction, team news, lineups

2

PI

Silva confirms Fulham injury blow ahead of Wolves fixture

3

SC

'Titanic' Sporting defender 'on Man City's radar' after Champions League sucker punch

4

'S

Who is Europe's top league scorer in 2024?

5

WI

Will Shaw, Yoro, Mainoo play? Amorim addresses Man United squad ahead of Ipswich clash

6

WS

Team News: Celta Vigo vs. Barcelona injury, suspension list, predicted XIs

7

TN

Will Amorim win first game in charge of Man United? Premier League GW12 predictions

8

WA

Will Gyokeres, Quenda arrive? Amorim discusses Man United transfer strategy

9

WG

Team News: Man City vs. Spurs injury, suspension list, predicted XIs

10

TN


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .