How Helmut Marko beat one of his fiercest F1 rivals to signing Max Verstappen for Red Bull in 2014.
A full-time seat with Red Bull’s sister team, Toro Rosso, was tabled, and the rest is history.
11 December 2025
Ashley Hambly
HITC
Helmut Marko would later get one over on Niki Lauda by beating him to Max Verstappen’s signature. It’s no secret that both Mercedes and Red Bull were vying for the signature of a 16-year-old Verstappen after previously making waves in karting and holding his own in Formula 3.
According to Hughes, there was a ‘tug of war’ for Verstappen’s talents, and his father, Jos Verstappen, was entertaining both sides, waiting for the right offer. Mercedes were just entering their dominant period, and Lauda had offered the young Dutchman a seat in GP2 with a ‘planned pathway to F1’.
Marko knew this and also knew that he had to come up with an even more attractive offer in order to sway his mind. A full-time seat with Red Bull’s sister team, Toro Rosso, was tabled, and the rest is history.
‘An even more attractive offer’;
https://www.hitc.com/how-helmut-mark...-bull-in-2014/
Helmut Marko’s unseen reaction to Gianpiero Lambiase looking upset after the 2025 F1 finale
11 December 2025
Shay Rogers
F1 Oversteer
After the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Helmut Marko was seen talking to an emotional Gianpiero Lambiase, Verstappen’s race engineer, after missing out on the world title.
“When GP was in tears on the pitwall, three days ago, who came and gave him an ‘It’s alright mate, it’s alright.’? It was Helmut,” Ted Kravitz told the Sky Sports F1 Podcast. “There’s something deep inside me that is sorry to see the old guy go.”
“Something very small, and I will take it up, put it in a small bag, and throw it in the bin when we’ve finished this podcast, because I think his time has finished.”
‘It’s alright mate, it’s alright.’;
https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/hel...025-f1-finale/
Vettel voices disbelief at Marko stepping away from Red Bull
Vettel caught off guard by Marko's sudden departure from Red Bull
12 Dec 2025
Tobia Elia
GPblog.com
Sebastian Vettel was surprised by Helmut Marko’s departure from Red Bull. Speaking to Sport1 and F1-Insider, the four-time world champion said: “I was just as surprised as everyone else. I wish Helmut all the best for his future and a well-deserved retirement.”
“Helmut can call himself the originator of Red Bull’s success in Formula 1,” Vettel added, also noting that Marko was “the architect of success not only in terms of driver selection — central decisions on the team’s lineup, personnel, and strategy were also made by him.” The first fruits of Marko’s empire came during the peak years of the former German driver, who was the first to deliver a championship to the Milton Keynes team in 2010 and continued to do so for four consecutive years until 2013.
In an exclusive interview with GPblog, Marko didn’t rule out the possibility of attending “one or two Grand Prix,” but made it clear he has no interest in returning full-time. The Graz-born executive also dismissed any role as an F1 analyst, jokingly saying, “You’ll never see me running around with a microphone making interviews.”
‘Vettel voices disbelief’;
https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/vette...-from-red-bull
Guenther Steiner explains why Red Bull won’t be ‘worse off’ after Helmut Marko’s F1 exit
11 December 2025
Shay Rogers
HITC
Guenther Steiner expects ‘well-established’ Red Bull to be fine without Helmut Marko. Ex-Haas boss Guenther Steiner thinks that the team and drivers will be just fine without Marko’s influence. His departure isn’t so significant, in his eyes.
“I don’t think they will be worse off,” he told the Red Flags Podcast. “I don’t know if they are better off, but I don’t think they will be worse off, because the team is well-established, it seems like, under the leadership of Laurent [Mekies].”
“It seems like they know what they want and what they do. The races are the same, they did a good job and I think if there is something happening, Helmut Marko can always come back.”
“The team is well-established”;
https://www.hitc.com/guenther-steine...arkos-f1-exit/
What Red Bull owners have ‘explicitly’ told Max Verstappen about the team’s future after Helmut Marko exit
10 December 2025
Ashley Hambly
F1 Oversteer
In an update from Motorsport Nederland, F1 journalist Ronald Vording revealed the latest news regarding Verstappen’s future at the team following the exit of one of his closest confidantes, Marko. He said, “Max has often publicly defended Marko. The best example is Saudi Arabia last year. In the midst of that whole power struggle with Christian Horner. When Marko’s position came under pressure, he was actually in danger of being sacked. And Max said, if [Marko] has to leave, then he’s leaving too. So Max had Marko’s full support there.
“That might give the impression that this also has direct consequences for Max Verstappen, but insiders say that it’s a bit more nuanced than that. Firstly, of course, there is the much-discussed Marko clause. From Red Bull’s point of view, this has already been neutralised with a kind of side letter. But secondly, what Red Bull has now, the Austrian side and also the Thai side in terms of owners, have once again expressed their full commitment in light of all this, and they have made this clear to Max Verstappen.”
“They have also explicitly entered into that conversation. And Max himself said on Sunday that the atmosphere in the team is up to him, he can see that very clearly now. So, under the leadership of Laurent Mekies, Max Verstappen feels comfortable. He even added that he feels better here in Abu Dhabi now than he did a year ago. Of course, he was world champion then, and now he is not. But back then, he felt that everything was going wrong at Red Bull. And now there is a sense of calm.”
“Neutralised with a kind of side letter”;
https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/wha...ut-marko-exit/
