Red Bull’s title hopes in doubt as Helmut Marko slams Bahrain GP performance: 'World championship won't happen'

Max Verstappen finished sixth in a frustrating Bahrain Grand Prix as Red Bull’s title hopes took a major hit. Helmut Marko has warned that the championship may be slipping away unless major improvements are made before the next race in Jeddah.

Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing endured one of their most frustrating weekends in recent memory at the
2025 Bahrain Grand Prix, raising serious concerns about their Formula One title defence. This has prompted senior advisor Helmut Marko to concede that a World Championship title “won’t happen” if results like this continue.

Verstappen could only salvage a sixth-place finish after a frustrating race at the Sakhir International Circuit, while his teammate Yuki Tsunoda crossed the line in ninth. Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris both stood on the podium for McLaren on P1 and P3 respectively, while George Russell of Mercedes took the second spot. After the race, Marko didn’t hold back in his assessment of the team’s performance.

“With a performance like this, unfortunately, the World Championship won’t happen. It’s a very difficult day for Red Bull, that’s obvious to all of us. We have to get, as soon as possible, performance in the car again and also standards like a pitstop have to work. The car is not the fastest and then the pitstops are not working. That is not acceptable,” Marko said.

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