The Red Bull outfit has christened its very first in-house power unit after founder Dietrich Mateschitz. The engine carries the name DM01 and is a tribute to the boss who died in 2022. “He is the reason why we’re all here today,” team principal Laurent Mekies says. Max Verstappen is also pleased with the tribute: “He meant so much to everyone in the team.”
Dietrich Mateschitz was behind the creation of Red Bull’s Formula 1 team in 2005 after taking over the Jaguar outfit. The Austrian then saw his team go on to claim six drivers’ and four constructors’ titles before his death in 2022. Red Bull Powertrains was founded in 2021 to deliver the first self-built engines for the 2026 season together with collaboration partner Ford. Now, with the 2026 season about to begin, team principal Laurent Mekies reveals that Red Bull Powertrains has named its very first engine after Mateschitz.
“This very first engine is called the ‘DM01’, as a tribute to Mr Mateschitz,” Mekies revealed at the season launch event in Detroit. “It’s his vision, his boldness — he invented the Red Bull spirit and that’s the reason we’re all here today. Back then he made that incredible decision to make us completely independent, both in chassis and power unit. Dietrich wasn’t afraid of the scale of the challenge and today we have the opportunity to honour him and, hopefully, make him proud of us.”
‘Dietrich meant a lot to F1’
Max Verstappen is also pleased with his team’s choice to name the engine after the founder. “It’s actually the only name you can give,” the driver said in Detroit. “It’s a shame he can’t witness it himself, but it’s a nice gesture from Red Bull, to honour him like that. He has meant so much to everyone in the team, to me personally, and to Formula 1. We’ll always do our best for Dietrich.”
