Horner warned that Verstappen may side with Marko amid Red Bull “unrest”

That is the view of ex-F1 driver-turned pundit Ralf Schumacher, who believes newly-crowned three-time world champion Verstappen “would not tolerate” Marko being pushed out of Red Bull. 

Schumacher’s comments are in response to the Brazilian broadcaster Globo reporting that Marko could be removed from his consultancy role amid “tension” with Red Bull team principal Horner. 

“Horner has been trying to get rid of Marko for some time to control the group's operation in Formula 1 as a whole,” the Brazilian newspaper wrote.

But Schumacher thinks Horner should be careful about how he plays a potentially-delicate situation. 

"Unrest leads to performance suffering. That's why you should be very careful and think about what you have achieved together,” Schumacher told Sky Deutschland.

"Horner is well advised not to exert further pressure. That wouldn't turn out well for him.

"The connection between Dr. Marko and Verstappen should not be underestimated. Dr. Marko promoted him very early and is always on him. 

"You hear that Verstappen would not tolerate it, but could rather do without Horner.”

Schumacher also suggested that issues between Horner and Marko will be eased in time as the 80-year-old decides to scale back on his F1 involvement. 

"Dr. Marko will no longer want to have this stress of traveling to the racetracks around the globe forever,” he concluded.