Red Bull's racing boss Helmut Marko has reacted to speculation that Toro Rosso could lose Max Verstappen to a rival outfit for next season.
Young Max's rise to prominence in motor racing has been nothing short of meteoric, culminating with a racing seat at Toro Rosso at only 17-years-old.
Evidently, Verstappen's talent is under close scrutiny from Red Bull's main rivals, notably Ferrari who may have put the Dutch teenager on its short list to replace Kimi Raikkonen, alongside Valterri Bottas.
But speaking to Dutch newspaper The Telegraaf, Marko was quick to pre-empt the rumors, underling instead the multi-year contract which binds Verstappen to Red Bull.
"It makes no sense to speculate like that. Max has a multi-year contract with Red Bull," Marko said. "The plan is that he will drive next year with Toro Rosso also."
The Austrian manager also stressed that while Verstappen's performance at the pinnacle of racing has been remarkable, he is still very much under development with mounds of experience yet to be acquired.
"Max was very good on Friday and on Saturday morning, but not so good in qualifying and in the race. Yes he had bad luck on Saturday with a technical problem, but a lot also has to do with experience. It is not so important to be P3 on Friday morning for example. In general, I think at Toro Rosso they need to become better at building up over a weekend."
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