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McLaren boss Zak Brown has lashed out at the comments made by Red Bull chief Helmut Marko where he claimed that Lando Norris was 'mentally weaker'. The 2024 F1 season started on a positive note for the Austrian team as they enjoyed a dominant presence over the grid.
The situation, however, changed when McLaren introduced a major upgrade to the car in Miami. From that point onwards, the trajectory of both teams has been inverse, as McLaren, a team that hasn't fought for a title in a decade, continues to chalk up impressive performances. On the other hand, Red Bull, a well-oiled machine, is facing troubles with their car that has seemingly gotten worse as the season has gone on.
Heading into the last six races, the gap between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen is 52 points. Helmut Marko was asked to weigh in on the subject, and the Austrian chose the Dutch driver to triumph over the season.
For Zak Brown, however, a bigger highlight of Marko's comments, was the language used to talk about Lando Norris being mentally weaker, citing the McLaren driver's past admittance of having mental health struggles.
Zak Brown did not take kindly to these comments from the Austrian and criticized Marko for 'setting the sport back'. In the FIA press conference, he said (as quoted by Motorsport),
"I read Helmut's comments, which I thought were disappointing but not surprising. Lando has been kind of an ambassador for mental health. Toto [Wolff] has spoken about mental health, so I think it's a serious issue that we've tried to talk about and bring to the forefront."
The 52-year-old felt that racing analytics aside, Marko's comments were in 'poor taste'.
"Poking at that situation, I think is pretty inappropriate and kind of sets us back 10-20 years. But it's all fun and games in how some people go racing and what tactics they use from a sporting perspective, but I thought that one was in pretty poor taste," Zak Brown added.
What the Red Bull chief had said about the Mclaren driver
Heading into the F1 US GP, Red Bull's Helmut Marko was questioned about who he favored in the title battle out of Lando Norris and Max Verstappen. The Austrian picked the Dutch driver and added that one of the biggest reasons behind was the mental strength he possessed over the rest of the grid.
The Austrian even seemed to take a dig at Norris, mentioning how the McLaren driver has his rituals to keep him mentally in the right zone before a race. In an interview with Motorsport, Marko said,
"[Max] is the best, he's the fastest and, above all, he has the mental strength to theoretically fight for the world championship more than Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris. We know Norris has some mental weaknesses. I've read about some of the rituals he needs to do to perform well on race day."
The race weekend in Austin has started on a promising note for Red Bull as Max Verstappen has secured pole position for the sprint. Meanwhile, McLaren's Lando Norris would be in P4.
