Marko names only two drivers he thinks would be ‘nearer’ to Verstappen

Verstappen claimed a dominant eighth victory in a row - and 10th win from 12 races this season - by completing a fightback win from sixth on the grid at the Belgian Grand Prix. 

The Dutchman hunted down and breezed past early race-leader Perez by Lap 17 and went on to win by a comfortable margin of 22 seconds as he opened up his championship lead to 125 points heading into the summer break. 

Speaking on the latest episode of the F1 Nation podcast after the race, Marko suggested that only Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton would be able to get closer to Verstappen’s current level of performance. 

Even then, Marko insisted that “nobody could beat him at the moment”. 

“Being second behind Max is like a win,” Marko said. “There won’t be any other driver who could stay with him on one level. 

"Maybe [Fernando] Alonso and [Lewis] Hamilton would be nearer, but nobody could beat him at the moment.

“I know how good Max is [and] that has to be considered. He’s nursing the tyres and he’s still going fast. 

“He can read the race and he’s so far ahead [with] what he’s doing he’s already past. It’s unbelievable capacity in his head.”

While Verstappen appears on course to win his third straight drivers’ title, Red Bull also hold a strong position at the top of the constructors’ championship. 

They currently hold a 256-point lead over second-place Mercedes but such is Verstappen’s dominance, his points tally alone would be enough to keep Red Bull on top.