Guenther Steiner claims ‘nobody can touch’ one F1 team boss after what he did during 2024 season

After the first 10 races of the 2024 Formula 1 season, many fans and pundits were probably expecting another year of Red Bull dominance.

The Milton Keynes-based outfit and Max Verstappen were unstoppable in 2023, as the Dutchman won 19 out of 22 races and the team secured victory in all but one Grand Prix. As Verstappen claimed pole position at the first seven races and won seven of the first 10 events, many expected the partnership to disappear into the distance again.

While that did end up happening as the 27-year-old secured his fourth consecutive world championship at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, it was not as simple as many would have thought after Red Bull fell behind their rivals in development and the RB20 became a difficult car to drive.

At times, Red Bull were the fourth fastest team on the grid as the likes of McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes took a step forward in their performance. After the Spanish Grand Prix, Verstappen went on a 10-race winless run, only grabbing four podiums in that time.

Sergio Perez’s poor form was also a significant factor in Red Bull dropping behind their rivals in the Constructors’ Championship. The Mexican did not score a podium after the Chinese Grand Prix as the defending champions finished third in the standings behind Ferrari and the winners McLaren.

Guenther Steiner says ‘nobody can touch” Zak Brown after winning the Constructors’ Championship with McLaren

McLaren have enjoyed a meteoric rise in the last 18 months, having gone from almost the very back of the grid at the start of 2023 to champions in 2024.

It is an incredible transformation and a return to glory for the team, with it being their first title since 1998. A significant reason for McLaren’s dramatic upturn in form is the job of CEO Zak Brown, as well as team principal Andrea Stella who have done a brilliant job to build the team back to the top.

This has consisted of attracting multiple sponsors to the team when McLaren had been under threat of going out of business and making several high-profile signings across the organisation, including their two talented drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Speaking on the Champ1 YouTube channel, Guenther Steiner claims Brown is ‘the best’ for the job he has done at McLaren and says ‘nobody can touch’ him after winning the team silverware in 2024.

“Andrea does a great job. I mean Zak says it is Andrea who is responsible for the success and not him,” he said.

“Logically Zak too [is] responsible for getting the people and also commercially, look at McLaren. If you look at the car when the car was still, I think it was black or dark grey, there were hardly any sponsors.

“Now it has, I don’t think there’s any more McLaren space where there’s not a sponsor on top, let’s see what happens.

“Since the world champion is able to find sponsors, you have to tell him commercially he is the best. Nobody can touch him and now he can win.”

Can McLaren fight Max Verstappen for the drivers’ title in 2025?

McLaren’s performance this season will put them as the favourites to challenge for the title in 2025, and after missing out to Verstappen in 2024, Norris is keen to go one step further next year and win the championship.

But it is clear that the Woking-based outfit need to be sharper as a team, especially when it comes to team orders. McLaren’s indecisive calls in Budapest and Monza on how Norris and Piastri battle on track are just a couple of examples where they cost themselves the title.

READ MORE: All you need to know about McLaren F1 Team from team principal to engine

McLaren have two talented drivers who can, in theory, fight for the championship and Brown does not seem to have a number one driver amongst the two, given that McLaren keep score of when Norris and Piastri help each other.

But Steiner thinks McLaren will lose the title if they do not decide who to prioritise in 2025. With Norris receiving most of the support for his title bid in 2024, it will be interesting to see how McLaren plays next season as they look to dethrone Red Bull.