F1 Singapore GP: Helmut Marko predicts Red Bull vs McLaren battle, dismisses Ferrari. Helmut Marko believes the Singapore Grand Prix will be a direct battle between Red Bull and McLaren.

The Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship could reach a turning point at the Singapore Grand Prix, where Helmut Marko has made it clear that he sees the fight being between Red Bull and McLaren, leaving Ferrari out of the equation. The Austrian team is fully backing Max Verstappen as they attempt to reignite the title battle. While the Constructors’ Championship already appears to be in McLaren’s hands, the Drivers’ Standings might still open up. The gap between current leader Oscar Piastri and Verstappen remains a steep 69 points, making Marina Bay a crucial weekend for Red Bull’s hopes.

The final practice session — the only one held under the lights — offered significant insights. The McLaren MCL39 once again confirmed itself as the car to beat, showing outstanding performance through the medium- and low-speed sections. Both Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris can count on having the most competitive package on the grid, but this time, the margin for error is practically nonexistent.

Red Bull is close behind, as the latest updates have improved aerodynamic load, allowing the RB21 to “see” the Woking car up ahead. With the Racing Bulls also showing impressive speed — and with Isack Hadjar potentially challenging Ferrari and Mercedes — the Milton Keynes outfit hopes to apply enough pressure on McLaren to trigger a mistake, either from the drivers or the team. Helmut Marko believes that qualifying will be absolutely decisive.

Marko: “It’s a matter of a few hundredths”

Speaking to Sky Sport Deutschland, the Red Bull advisor expressed his satisfaction with the team’s performance on Friday in Singapore. “It’s been a long time since we’ve worked this well during practice sessions here,” said Marko. “I think we are very, very close. It will be crucial to extract those last few hundredths from the car. We still have some small issues, but both Max and our engineers are happy with the car.”

“As for our rivals, Norris had that incident with Leclerc, but I would still say we have closed the gap. Saturday will be decisive. The real question is how we can extract those last hundredths? Because, once again, it will come down to a few hundredths of a second,” concluded the Austrian.