Helmut Marko has revealed the sequence of events that led to his departure from Red Bull. The Austrian advisor met with CEO Oliver Mintzlaff ahead of a team dinner, informing his boss that if he were to step away from the sport, it would be on a full-time basis, rather than a part-time solution.
The 82-year-old has been a vital cog in the Red Bull machine over the last two decades. Still, after watching Max Verstappen fall two points short of a fifth consecutive Drivers’ Championship title at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Marko opted to call time on his legendary career.
Speaking to ORF about the conditions of his departure, Marko said: “We had a difficult season this year. It was particularly bumpy in the middle. We were 104 points behind in Holland. Then we started a comeback that was certainly unique.
“But unfortunately, it didn’t work out in the last race. We lost the championship by two points. Although this comeback was unique, it was still a very bitter disappointment. It hit us particularly hard. Even after the race, I felt that something had been lost.
“I then stayed in Dubai on Monday. That’s when I made my decision. Even if we had won, it would have been a good reason to leave this job. But now, in hindsight, because we lost, it’s also a good point.”
Marko went straight to CEO Mintzlaff with his decision. When his future was up in the air at the height of Red Bull’s internal tension last year, Verstappen was willing to walk away from the team to protect his ally, but on this occasion, the Austrian decided to quit.
“I didn’t discuss it with anyone, but called Oliver Mintzlaff, the manager responsible at Red Bull, in Dubai and asked if we could meet briefly,” Marko continued. “A kind of championship dinner was planned. And we met before the dinner.
“I told him what I wanted. We discussed for a while whether a partial solution was still possible. I said that if we were going to do it, we had to do it completely. That happened ad hoc. The other shareholder from the Thai family was also present. But it was all very amicable and went very well.
“Max should have been there, too. There were some problems with his flight, so he wasn’t there. I called him the next day. It wasn’t a normal conversation. There was a certain melancholy in the air. He said he never could have imagined that he would ever achieve such success.”
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