Marko Blasts Red Bull ‘Nonsense’ as Explosive Exit Fallout Continues
Former Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko has launched another scathing attack on his old team, dismissing an official Red Bull press release as “nonsense” and hinting at deep internal changes that ultimately pushed him into retirement.
Marko stepped away from his long-standing role at the end of the 2025 Formula 1 season, closing the book on a 20-year chapter that helped shape Red Bull into one of the most dominant teams in modern F1 history. During his tenure, the Austrian was instrumental in identifying and nurturing elite talent, most famously Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen, both of whom went on to become multiple world champions under the Red Bull banner.
His departure came shortly after Verstappen failed to secure a record-equalling fifth consecutive drivers’ championship in 2025, prompting speculation that the missed milestone influenced Marko’s decision to retire. But the 82-year-old has now firmly rejected that narrative, criticising Red Bull for suggesting otherwise.
Speaking to De Limburger, Marko made it clear he had little time for the team’s explanation of his exit. “I didn’t read that nonsense press release,” he said bluntly. “Let me just say that a lot has changed at the team in a very short space of time. You think you know people well, and then it turns out you don’t.”
Marko stressed that Verstappen’s title loss played no role in his decision to leave. While he admitted that winning five championships in a row with Verstappen had been a personal dream, he insisted the outcome of the 2025 season would not have altered his plans. “That fifth title wouldn’t have changed anything,” he explained. “Of course, it was my ultimate ambition to achieve it with Max, the best driver we’ve ever had. I truly believed it was possible, even going into the final race. But it simply wasn’t meant to be.”
Since leaving Red Bull, Marko has adopted an increasingly critical tone toward the organisation, unsettling what many believed had become a more stable environment following major leadership changes. Red Bull entered a new era in 2025 when Laurent Mekies was promoted to team principal after the dramatic dismissal of Christian Horner, who had led the team for two decades.
Marko’s comments have reignited scrutiny of Red Bull’s turbulent recent past, particularly his strained relationship with Horner in the final years of the Briton’s reign. In a separate interview with De Telegraaf, Marko offered a revealing and controversial account of the internal power struggle that followed the declining health and eventual death of Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz in 2022.
“Together with Didi, I founded Red Bull Racing in 2005,” Marko recalled. “We appointed Christian as team principal, and I was there to oversee things. The real power always sat in Austria — we were the ones making the decisions.”
According to Marko, that balance shifted dramatically after Mateschitz’s health deteriorated. He described a moment at a pre-Austrian Grand Prix gathering in 2022 that, in his view, marked a turning point. “Didi was there, but he wasn’t well,” Marko said. “Christian came to me and said, ‘He won’t make it to the end of the year.’ From that point on, everything changed.”
Marko claimed Horner began aligning himself closely with Chalerm Yoovidhya, co-owner of Red Bull GmbH, in a bid to consolidate power once Mateschitz passed away later that year. “After Didi died, Christian did everything he could to take control with Chalerm’s support,” Marko alleged. “I fought hard on behalf of Austria to stop that from happening.”
The former advisor went further, accusing Horner of dishonesty and manipulation during that period. “We were increasingly able to show that Horner was lying about almost everything,” Marko said. He added that once Yoovidhya realised what was happening, the tide began to turn. “When Chalerm came to his senses, things changed.”
Despite that shift, Marko described the final years under Horner as deeply unpleasant. “Dirty tricks were played,” he claimed, suggesting that several controversies attributed to him were deliberately fabricated to undermine his position.
He pointed to comments he was accused of making about Sergio Pérez during the Mexican driver’s time at the team, as well as claims in 2024 that Red Bull’s engine programme was behind schedule and at risk of losing Ford as a partner. “I never said those things,” Marko insisted. “But they were used to try and get me suspended. If Max hadn’t stepped in during Jeddah, it might have worked.”
Now retired, Marko appears unwilling to completely bury the past. His sharp words continue to cast a long shadow over Red Bull, reopening old wounds and raising questions about the true cost of the power struggles that played out behind the scenes. While the team looks to move forward under new leadership, Marko’s explosive revelations suggest that the fallout from Red Bull’s most turbulent era is far from over.
