Helmut Marko officially leaves Red Bull after twenty years. And if his influence on the brand’s successes in Formula 1 is undeniable, it is equally true that his over-the-top statements and ways no longer have a place in today’s Circus
December 9, 2025
Helmut Marko and Red Bull divorce: the super consultant of the Milton Keynes galaxy will leave his role at the end of the yearas announced in a press release issued by the team’s parent company, Red Bull GmbH. It was clear that Marko was at the end of the race in the Yas Marina paddock after the end of the Abu Dhabi GP. It was Marko himself who explained first to the few usual very trusted journalists and then to a wider audience that he wasn’t sure about continuing next year. And the words of team principal Laurent Mekies at the media session we attended after the race were eloquent, even if he had not directly confirmed the farewell.
“He has been incredible in supporting us in this comeback. But in Formula 1 there is no static environment: we always review the organisations, both technical and sporting. I’m not just saying this for him, it’s a normal thing. It’s absolutely normal to continuously review how we can improve our way of operating. I can only thank him for the role he had in transforming what seemed like a difficult situation in the middle of the season”, Mekies told us. AND today came the official announcement of the end of a twenty-year history, a time in which Marko brought twenty drivers to Formula 1, destroying some and contributing to the consecration of a few, above all Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen.
“My commitment to motorsport has lasted for six decades, and the twenty years spent with Red Bull have been an extraordinary and extremely successful journey – declared Marko -. I have contributed to wonderful pages shared with many talented people. What we have built and achieved together makes me proud. Missing the world championship by a whisker this season shook me deeply, and made me realize that now is the right time to end this long and intense chapter of success.. I wish the team a successful future, and I am convinced that they will fight for both world titles next year.”
Nn leaving Red Bull, Marko shows a humanity that he has rarely shown in his experience in Formula 1as ruthless as he was made by a fate that prevented him from demonstrating his worth as a pilot with that accident in which he lost an eye in 1972. Marko always moved with great freedom under the management of Christian Horner, speaking as and as much as he liked with the journalists he trusted, sure as he was of the impact of his words. But this attitude backfired on him in the final phase of his experience at Red Bull. It all started with the death of Dietrich Mateschitz in 2022, when the balance in Red Bull changed.
Oliver Mintzlaff, appointed CEO of the entire energy drink giant after Mateschitz’s death with the approval of his heir, his son Mark, would never have looked kindly on Marko’s interference. And with the arrival of Laurent Mekies as CEO and team principal of the team, the balance has moved further against the super consultant. There were two drops that broke the camel’s back. As reported exclusively by PlanetF1 Yesterday, Marko would have managed a negotiation with Alex Dunne in total autonomy to get him into the Red Bull academy, even going so far as to get him to sign a contract without going through Mintzlaff and Mekies. And then there’s the ugly mess with Kimi Antonelli.
Marko had pointed the finger at the very young Mercedes driver after the race in Qatar, claiming that he had voluntarily given way to Lando Norris and triggering a violent reaction on social media, even culminating in death threats. It would have been Max Verstappen who demanded that Red Bull expose itself publicly, with a note of apology actually released before Abu Dhabi. At this point, the measure was full, even for Laurent Mekies, particularly annoyed by what happened. And if the statement talks about a voluntary choice by Marko, it is not difficult to imagine that this decision is due to an environment that has become hostile to him.
Formula 1 is no longer the right place for Helmut Marko. If on the one hand we must recognize him for having brought a good portion of the current grid into the Circus, from Pierre Gasly to Carlos Sainz, passing through Alex Albon, on the other his incendiary statements seemed increasingly out of place. The list would be very long. We simply underline how many times Marko has decided to use the mental health of the pilots as a weapon against them. He had said that he had forced Yuki Tsunoda to see a psychologist, as if there was something wrong. He had mocked the vulnerability of Isack Hadjar, who broke down in tears after hitting the wall on the formation lap in Melbourne. And he had repeatedly highlighted Lando Norris’ weaknesses.
Ironically, Dr. Marko abdicated his role as master father in Red Bull immediately after the Englishman won the championshipalways honest in admitting his fragilities, even at the cost of exposing his side to characters like the Austrian, always ready to sink the blade. Formula 1 welcomes a world champion completely different from that toxic ideal promulgated on several occasions by Markounable to notice the sensitivity of his pupil Verstappen, paternal towards the rookies even before becoming a parent in his private life. The Formula 1 in which Marko dominated no longer exists. It has changed as the rest of the world has. Fortunately.
