Lewis Hamilton’s relationship with Max Verstappen could’ve been ‘undone’ for good – Marko

F1: Can Lewis Hamilton do it again?

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Red Bull chief advisor Helmut Marko believes Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen’s relationship after the British Grand Prix fallout “cannot be undone quickly, if at all” as the pair battle it out for a world title this season.

The fierce rivalry went up a notch at Silverstone as the pair collided on the opening lap of the race, causing a huge fallout between Red Bull and Mercedes.

Red Bull were left fuming with the British driver, with Marko calling for a one-race ban, with team principal Christian Horner calling Hamilton’s driving “desperate” as Verstappen speared off at around 180mph and into the tyre barrier.

Hamilton was handed a ten-second time penalty for his part in the crash, but the war of words seemed to overshadow the seven-time world champions win in front of his home crowd.

Things weren’t much helped by another collision during the Hungarian Grand Prix, as Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas collided into the back of McLaren’s Lando Norris, who then hit into both Red Bull drivers, ending Sergio Perez’s race.

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The pile-up left Verstappen’s car heavily damaged, making any sort of fightback impossible, limping across the line P9.

Tensions were high heading into the summer break, as Hamilton regained the lead of the championship standings, and Marko believes this season things may have gone too far to fix between the duo.

“We want to win the World title and for that, you have to score as many points as possible. Max knows that Hamilton knows that too,” Marko said to Motorsport Magazin.

“But something happened that cannot be undone so quickly in the relationship between these two if it happens at all. But I hope both of them can keep it fair and under control.”

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Verstappen trails the Mercedes driver by eight points, despite building up a 33-point lead heading into the British Grand Prix.

But after scoring just two points in the same amount of races, the 23-year-old has all to play for once the summer break ends.

“I think Max has proved this season that he is really at World Championship level,” Marko said.

“In Bahrain, of course, we had some problems with track limits, which cost us the win, pole, and fastest lap.

“The sledgehammer blow in Baku, when he was leading masterfully and lost his victory because of that blowout, that’s a shame.

“But his whole attitude and relaxed way of approaching racing shows he has taken another step towards the top.”

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