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Arvid Lindblad’s potential was immediately recognised by Helmut Marko, who played a key role in him joining Racing Bulls.
Lindblad delivered on high expectations in a massive way at the Australian Grand Prix, finishing P8 and securing valuable points for Racing Bulls.
It was an impressive performance from Lindblad, as he managed to withstand Max Verstappen at points during his debut race.
Describe Arvid Lindblad’s F1 debut in one word… GO! 👇
Lindblad was a class above Liam Lawson, who seemed to struggle at Albert Park. For Racing Bulls, Arvid Lindblad proved to be the measuring stick.
And it appears Lindblad was backed by Helmut Marko before he joined the team, as the former Red Bull advisor told Racing Bulls he was just as good as Isack Hadjar.
READ MORE: Ollie Bearman lauds Arvid Lindblad for ‘mega job’ on his F1 debut at the Australian Grand Prix
Helmut Marko knew Arvid Lindblad had special potential, encouraged Racing Bulls to give him a chance
Racing Bulls CEO Peter Bayer spoke to Autosport about Arvid Lindblad’s incredible start to his rookie season and noted just how impressive he has been.
Helmut Marko endorsed Lindblad, telling Racing Bulls that he was just as good as Isack Hadjar. And since then, he has managed to win over everyone on the team with his talent and relentless work ethic.
“Honestly, I’m so happy for Arvid. He came with a lot of praise from Helmut. And Helmut kept saying, this kid is on the level of Isack [Hadjar]. And he absolutely delivered.”
“The engineers love him. He’s very focused. He’s a hard worker. He’s sitting down learning the whole engine stuff, the switches, the modes. Very, very impressive. I can’t remember anymore what it was like when I was 18.”
With such an impressive outing in his first race, expectations are through the roof for Lindblad. But it appears his performance could have a long-term impact on Racing Bulls.
READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton and Arvid Lindblad miss out as F1 fans vote for Australian GP Driver of the Day
Where will Arvid Lindblad rank among Formula 1’s recent rookies?
Arvid Lindblad’s understanding of regulations allowed Racing Bulls to improve pace
Bayer also revealed that Lindblad’s excellent instincts and adaptation of the new techniques allowed Racing Bulls to gain nearly two seconds during the race.
“Together [with Red Bull] we managed to get at least three cars to the finish. And it’s complex. Honestly, when you’re listening to the conversations between race engineering, PU, and management, there’s so much going on.”
“I don’t want to go into too much detail, but during the race, we just figured out that if Arvid is changing his way of using and deploying and applying the different modes, we actually can gain up to two seconds. And nobody knew about that before.”
Lindblad has settled into life in Formula 1 in grand fashion. If he has another good performance this weekend in China, Racing Bulls will be very confident about his prospects for the future.
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