The real reason for Helmut Marko's sudden Red Bull F1 exit

After more than 20 years as Red Bull’s motorsport advisor, Helmut Marko is leaving the F1 team.

The move was speculated over the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix before being officially confirmed by Red Bull on Tuesday.

Red Bull said Marko had “decided to step down at the end of 2025”, something which would be entirely plausible considering he is 82 years old.

But there is believed to be more to the story than meets the eye.

It is said that Marko signed former McLaren junior Alex Dunne to Red Bull’s development programme against the shareholders’ will.

As a result of Marko’s decision, Dunne had to be paid off not to join and has subsequently held talks with Alpine.

There were other clashes between Marko and Red Bull, including his offensive remarks about Sergio Perez’s nationality in 2023.

Marko was at the centre of a failed attempt to remove him in early 2024 after a fallout amid the controversy surrounding former team principal and CEO Christian Horner.

Most recently, Marko apologised for accusations about Kimi Antonelli after the Qatar Grand Prix which led to the Mercedes rookie receiving a torrent of vile abuse.

Ever since the death of Marko’s close friend, Red Bull co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz in 2022, there had been a shift in the relationship between the two parties.

Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff is understood to have been keen for a fresh start for the organisation’s two F1 teams following major management upheaval.

Red Bull expressed their gratitude to Marko’s contribution to the team over the past two decades.

After all, Marko made several key decisions that helped Red Bull’s rise to world championship winners through leading the programme that ultimately brought Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen into F1.

What does it mean for Max Verstappen?

Marko’s sudden departure raises questions about the future of Verstappen.

The four-time world champion, who missed out on a fifth consecutive drivers’ title by two points in 2025, is contracted to Red Bull until the end of 2028.

Verstappen committed to Red Bull for at least 2026 in the summer as part of an attempt to shut down rumours linking him with Mercedes, but his long-term future remains a major talking point.

Much will depend on Red Bull’s competitiveness in 2026, which remains an unknown as they embark on their first ever in-house power unit project amid wholesale rule changes.

But loosing Marko is a blow for Verstappen, who fiercely defended the Austrian when there was speculation over his future in early 2024.

Indeed, Verstappen was instrumental in keeping Marko at Red Bull, having issued a public quit threat by indicating that his future was directly linked to Marko’s.

This clause has since been removed from Verstappen’s contract.

Verstappen has described Marko as being one of the key “pillars” in the Red Bull team and viewed him as a “second father”.

Despite his loyalty to Marko, any future decision the Dutchman takes will be predominantly down to Red Bull’s performance.

Verstappen will have been convinced by Red Bull’s remarkable turnaround during the second half of 2025, which propelled his late and unexpected title bid.

He is also happy with Red Bull’s appointment of Laurent Mekies as team principal following Horner’s sacking in July.