Marko: I was criticised when I said a new Ayrton Senna is coming

First Marko fast-tracked 17-year-old Verstappen into F1 after a season in F3, and then a year and a bit later he ousted Daniil Kvyat from the senior team and promoted the Dutchman starting at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix which the youngster won... and the rest is history.

Right now it is no secret that Verstappen is impatient to win races and be in a strong car to challenge for victories and titles, but Marko says he is "not worried" about the exit clause in Verstappen's Red Bull contract.

Just prior to the Dutchman's sensational win in Austria, 21-year-old Verstappen would not deny the rumours of an exit and his management confirmed the existence of the exit clause.

But the win in Austria, and Red Bull-Honda's uptick in performance and results, appear to have calmed that story.

Auto Bild speculates that by the time of the summer break in August, only if Verstappen is outside the top three drivers in the championship will the clause be valid. Currently, he is third, just three points ahead of Sebastian Vettel.

"It's performance-related," Red Bull driver manager Marko said of the contract. "I'm not worried right now."

Clearly, Red Bull would like to keep Verstappen on board, whilst acknowledging the need to give him a fully competitor car, "When I said in 2015 that a new Ayrton Senna is coming, some experts criticised me about that. But now no one criticises."

"The victory on Sunday was an important step. Max knows what he has with us and Honda, and the Honda people showed what they are capable of doing.

"The first time they used a new, more aggressive engine software this season was a big step forward for us, and there will be another step on the engine in Monza."

"We are also improving on the chassis side in every race, so that now I can say confidently that when the others falter, we are there," added Marko.

https://www.grandprix247.com/2016/07/12/verstappen-is-the-new-senna/