Top advisor Helmut Marko will be celebrating his 82nd birthday at the end of April. Despite his age, the Austrian continues to dedicate himself tirelessly to Red Bull and its sister team, Racing Bulls. Marko often takes the junior drivers under his wing, having played a significant role in the Formula 1 careers of Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel, who together have won eight world titles. According to Marko, Vettel would be a suitable successor as his inevitable retirement draws closer.
Helmut Marko has not yet made a definitive decision about his future in Formula 1, although he confirmed to Sky Sports that the extensive travel is starting to take its toll. The packed calendar means that Marko must attend as many as twenty-four Grands Prix per year. “It’s clear that at some point, I won’t be able to handle this, not least because of my age,” said Marko. “The travel obligations are certainly no walk in the park.”
According to Marko, Sebastian Vettel, who also traveled to the Saudi Arabian GP this weekend, would be the ‘ideal successor’. “He (Vettel) is already working with girls in karting here in Saudi Arabia,” Marko explained. “In addition, he has been a brilliant strategist within all his Formula 1 teams. It would be fantastic if he could take over my work one day. He wouldn’t need a year for that – after two races, he would have it under control. Vettel knows what he wants to do in the future, and that is primarily motorsport,” concluded Marko.
Sebastian Vettel, who won four titles with Red Bull from 2009 to 2014, bid farewell to Formula 1 in 2022. Since then, he has sporadically attended a few Grands Prix, primarily to draw attention to charitable causes. When asked about the comments made by Helmut Marko, Vettel did not delve too deeply into the matter. “We’ll see if that’s something for me in the future,” he grinned. “As long as Helmut still enjoys it and considers himself suitable, he has a unique role – especially due to his experience with team dynamics. It would be a shame if he were to leave that position at some point. Red Bull would then have to evolve in a new, different direction.”
