Helmut Marko maps out Red Bull’s path in constructor’s championship after Max Verstappen’s Baku win

Max Verstappen entered the 2025 season as the defending champion. However, McLaren jumped Red Bull in the performance index coming into the current season, and the Dutchman struggled to match Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Mercedes and Ferrari reached on par with the Milton Keynes-based outfit’s performance. Helmut Marko came out after Verstappen's recent triumph and mapped out Red Bull's path in the constructors' championship.

Red Bull were arguably the most dominant team in the history of F1 during the 2023 season as they won all but one race. Coming in 2024, McLaren brought a major upgrade to Miami, which put them on par with the Milton Keynes-based team, and won the constructors' title last year.

In 2025, the Papaya team ran away with the Constructors' championship. While Max Verstappen has been the best after Norris and Piastri, the second Red Bull car hasn't been up to the mark. As a result, Ferrari and Mercedes are ahead in the constructors' championship.

However, Red Bull brought an upgrade after the summer break, which has pushed the Milton Keynes-based outfit near McLaren's performance index, and possibly jumped Ferrari and McLaren. The same was seen in the recent performances as Max Verstappen has won the last couple of races while Yuki Tsunoda also finished his season best P6 at the Azerbaijan GP.

F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan - Source: Getty

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko came out and detailed the goal for the team going into the last seven races of the season. He said,

“The first goal in the Constructors' Championship now is to get closer to Mercedes and Ferrari, or even overtake them. We're also focusing on Singapore, of course. We'll see how it goes there, and then we can make further plans.” (via ORF)

McLaren is almost out of Red Bull's reach for the Constructors' title. The Papaya team is 351 points ahead of the team led by Laurent Mekies. The Maximum points that a team can score in the last 7 rounds, including the three sprint races, is 353 points.

It would require Red Bull to finish 1-2 in every race (including sprint), get the fastest lap, as well as for both McLarens to not score any points for the remainder of the season. Since that goal is next to impossible, Helmut Marko has set his sights on beating Ferrari and Mercedes, who are just a few points ahead.

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F1 Pundit suggests “Lion” Max Verstappen is back in contention for the 2025 F1 title

Max Verstappen had a poor run of form going into the summer break, with a retirement at the Austrian GP and a P9 at the Belgian GP. However, with the new floor upgrades working wonders, the Dutchman is seemingly back on par with the McLaren.

F1 Pundit Ted Kravitz suggests Verstappen is back in the title fight after his back-to-back wins, as he detailed (via Sky Sports F1,

“Had he had the car all along, his plan and Red Bull's plan was always to stay within touching distance of the two McLarens and then wait until precisely this moment in the season when the pressure is on, crazy races, unusual tracks like Baku, like Singapore, like Qatar, like Austin, like Las Vegas.”

"And then pounce like the lion he is on the two championship-wise kittens, who haven't actually been in contention for a world championship at the sharp end of a season, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris,” added Kravitz

Max Verstappen needs to outscore Oscar Piastri by an average of 10 points in the remaining race weekends to take the 2025 championship home.