"Thank God I might add, he was the fastest in long runs" - Red Bull chief Helmut Marko happy that 5x race winner had a poor qualifying session

Red Bull Racing director Helmut Marko was relieved after Ferrari ace Charles Leclerc settled for a P8 finish in the qualifying race ahead of the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc kicked off his weekend in Suzuka on an inspiring note. The 26-year-old driver, who has won five F1 races in his career, finished P6 in the first practice session, 1:30.056s behind Red Bull driver Max Verstappen. His performance even drew words of praise from Red Bull advisor and head of the driver development programme, Helmut Marko.

The Austrian, annoyed with Leclerc's speed, expressed concerns about the Monegasque driver's long runs during FP1. He told the media after FP1 on Friday (via PlanetF1):

"Charles Leclerc’s run was a bit annoying. Or actually not annoying, but he was really fast. In that regard, we have to see how much fuel he had on board for that run."

Thus, it was a sigh of relief that the 80-year-old breathed after Leclerc, struggling with tire gripping issues, could only notch up a P8 finish in the qualifying race on Saturday. Marko, visibly content with the turn of events, expressed gratitude that Leclerc found himself further back on the grid. He told Motorsport-Magazin.com:

"Leclerc is relatively further back. Thank God I might add, he was the fastest in the long runs [on Friday]."

Marko added:

"The set-up worked and we conquered the entire front row. I think the race is going to be a battle between McLaren, Ferrari and ourselves."

---

Helmut Marko praises Red Bull driver Sergio Perez after Japanese GP qualifying

Red Bull continued their qualifying dominance in the fourth race of the season at Suzuka. The Austrian outfit locked out the front row, with reigning three-time champion Max Verstappen securing pole position mere 0.066s ahead of teammate Sergio Perez.

Marko lauded the team's updates, emphasizing their immediate impact and effectiveness in fine-tuning the setup. He said (via RacingNews365.com):

"The most important thing this weekend is that the updates worked well right away and that we succeeded well in fine-tuning the setup.

Speaking about Sergio Perez's performance, Marko highlighted the significance of the Mexican driver's return to the front row, marking his first top-two finish in qualifying since the previous year's Belgian Grand Prix. He said:

"It's been a long time since Perez was on that front row of the grid, I have to dig a lot into my memory for that. I think Perez was better than expected, especially after his bad weekend here last year."

After three races, Red Bull leads the F1 Constructors' standings with 97 points to its name, courtesy of two victories and four podium finishes. Ferrari finds itself in close proximity with the reigning Constructors' champion, merely four points behind in second position.