Red Bull chief Helmut Marko hammered by F1 fans for verdict on Lewis Hamilton

Formula One fans have hammered Red Bull chief Helmut Marko after he suggested that Lewis Hamilton should have retired at the conclusion of last season's title fight with Max Verstappen.

Hamilton was beaten in controversial circumstances in the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi, denying him a record eighth title and seeing Red Bull's Verstappen clinch his maiden crown.

While the expectation was that Hamilton would renew his rivalry with Verstappen in 2022, that has not proven to be the case with Mercedes way off the pace and the Brit finished outside of the points at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

Hamilton even suffered the embarrassment of being lapped by Verstappen during the race at Imola, with Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff apologising to the veteran driver afterwards and dubbing the car 'undriveable'.

Those struggles have certainly come as a surprise this term but Hamilton received no sympathy from Marko, who said after the race: "Maybe he should have stopped last year."

Fans were quick to condemn the 78-year-old Austrian for his comments though, with comments flooding social media platforms including Instagram and Twitter.

One fan on Instagram declared Marko was the 'biggest clown of them all', with another saying: "There's only one person that needs to retire now, Marko!' alongside with the hashtag 'ironic'.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Lewis Hamilton have retired last season? Comment below.

Meanwhile, a more confident fan on Twitter stated the Austrian 'may come to regret his words', while another stated he was 'classless like the rest of the Red Bull team'.

Red Bull have often attracted criticism in the past year from fans on social media, with supporters taking issue with perceived aggressive driving from Verstappen and complaints towards team principal Christian Horner.

The fall-out from the Abu Dhabi finale last season has certainly left a sour taste in the mouth of many and there could be a point in the season where the ill-feeling between Mercedes and Red Bull is ignited once again.

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