Helmut Marko will turn 82 at the end of April. Despite his age, Red Bull’s advisor remains a sprightly, energetic figure in life and the F1 paddock. The main reason? Max Verstappen. “I’ve never felt so connected to a driver,” he says.
The past year has been quite challenging for various reasons, admits Helmut Marko. “Max’s successes actually masked the problems we had with the car,” he says.
Marko is at a loss for words to describe Verstappen’s extraordinary qualities. The two share a close bond that goes far beyond that of an employee and employer. “I admit that,” says Marko. “Am I his second father? Haha, you won’t hear me say that. Look, I don’t know how long I’ve been working in this sport. What I do know is the first time I had a serious conversation with Max: he was 13 years old then. Normally, I talk for ten to fifteen minutes with a young driver. With Max, it was more than an hour.”
How much Max Verstappen appreciates Marko’s presence at Red Bull became evident last year in Jeddah. The advisor seemed likely to be suspended for allegedly leaking news about the Horner affair (the team boss was accused of inappropriate behavior) to the media. Verstappen immediately stepped in, stating he would tie his fate to that of his discoverer. In the end, Marko was not suspended.
The loyalty of the world champion is one of the reasons, assures the Austrian, why he still travels the world and visits Grands Prix despite his retirement age. “I still do this job for two reasons: one is Max and the other is to guard the spirit of Red Bull and Dietrich Mateschitz (former CEO of Red Bull GmbH) in the racing team. At least, that’s what I try to do, because no one can really replace Mateschitz. As for Max: he is a great talent and a special person. He embodies everything Red Bull stands for. The boss (Mateschitz) always said: we don’t buy stars, we make stars. Max is the perfect example of that: direct, accessible, and a great sportsman. It’s wonderful to work with someone like that. I’ve never felt so connected to a driver,” admits Marko, “although I was also very close with Seb (Vettel).”
