Marko: Sainz presented Ferrari with a belated gift.

      After the Mexican Grand Prix Helmut Marko was lavish with praise for Max Verstappen, and we have already quoted his words. But the comment by Red Bull’s motorsport advisor that aired on Sky Deutschland is curious in its own way.

      "Max came back brilliantly — on average he was lapping five or six tenths faster than his rivals," Marko said. "We were absolutely convinced he would finish second. However, Carlos Sainz gave Ferrari a belated farewell gift by crashing his Williams right at the end of the race, which led to a virtual safety car being deployed in the final laps."

      Sébastien Buemi, who still combines endurance racing and Formula E outings with duties as Red Bull Racing’s simulator driver, rates Verstappen’s performance at this stage of the season just as highly: "I think Max is the best driver of all time, simply the best. He performs at the highest level regardless of which car he is driving. It would be a shame if he doesn’t become champion this year.

      However, to win the title it’s not enough to be perfect — he will probably need a bit of luck as well. In the sense that the others won’t be lucky…"