Verstappen's race-ending Zandvoort crash left Helmut Marko 'scared'

Former Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has reflected on Max Verstappen's frightening crash on the opening lap of the Dutch Grand Prix. The four-time world champion lost control of his car at the final corner and hit the barriers heavily before coming to a halt sideways on the track. Verstappen's final appearance at Zandvoort in front of his home fans for the foreseeable future ended almost immediately in heartbreak for the four-time world champion. His early retirement brought a disappointing conclusion to a weekend in which Red Bull struggled for performance, leaving the Dutchman unable to deliver the result he hoped for in front of the Oranje Army. In an interview with his compatriots at OE24, Marko admitted that the most worrying moment came when Verstappen's car was left stranded sideways on the circuit, creating the risk of another driver hitting him. The Austrian was relieved that there was enough distance to the cars behind and praised Liam Lawson for reacting quickly to the dangerous situation. Marko was nevertheless able to recognise almost immediately from Verstappen's head movement that the four-time world champion was conscious and stable, before receiving confirmation over the radio that he was fine. He also pointed to Isack Hadjar's wrist injury as an example of how quickly unexpected injuries can occur. “I was already scared when the car was parked sideways. Thank God there was a gap to the back of the field and luckily Lawson reacted really well. If someone drives into a car standing in the way, it can be really dangerous.” “I saw right away from his head movement that Max was stable. Then his ‘I'm okay.’ and ‘Sorry!’ have already come. How quickly something can happen was seen with Hadjar. He injured his wrist while kickboxing with a trainer.” Photo: Race Pictures Photo: Race Pictures Verstappen finds Monza 'impossible' to predict: 'But that would be nice' After his DNF at Zandvoort, Max Verstappen heads to Monza determined to put a disappointing home weekend behind him and return to the fight at the Italian Grand Prix. Red Bull struggled to match the pace of its main rivals in the Netherlands, leaving the four-time world champion hoping for a more competitive showing when Formula 1 returns to action in Italy this weekend. However, Verstappen remains cautious about Red Bull's prospects at Monza and believes it is impossible to predict where the team will sit in the competitive order before the weekend begins. Rather than setting a specific result as his target, the Dutchman's priority is simply to see Red Bull close the performance gap and move nearer to the leading pace.