Helmut Marko thanked for his services after raising doubts about his future

After the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Helmut Marko surprised the paddock by saying he would think about continuing in his role in 2026. Although the Red Bull Racing advisor still has a contract through next year, he says he needs to feel comfortable about remaining active in the sport.

Marko did not want to say what reasons might lead him to step down. He commented in Abu Dhabi, “It's a complex [set] of different things." On a follow-up question—namely what his heart is telling him right now—he gave a somewhat evasive answer.

The top advisor said: "It's bloody difficult to get a fifth championship in a row. All the planning and the vision and all this. If circumstances… You have to perform, you can't make mistakes. That's the result. It's a disappointment for me [that] I didn't achieve the goal."

With those last sentences, Marko seemingly implied that—as often happens in sports—he should draw conclusions after the objectives are not met. He added: “I have to see, I have to sleep on it and then we'll see."

These words also came as a surprise to Mekies, who was asked about them in a media session with GPblog: 

The French team boss said:"Helmut has been incredible in how supportive he has been in helping us turning around things this year. Obviously, him and the top management had quite a few difficult decisions to make in the year.

Mekies thanked Marko for his service, but it is not a farewell speech. GPblog’s inquiries show that Mekies mainly wanted to emphasize how important Marko has been to the team, and that speaking in the past tense is largely a matter of a language barrier for the Frenchman.

As a result, the ball is mostly in Marko’s court. The Austrian has lost some of his power in recent months, which means he has less say over the drivers—an area where until a few years ago he always had full authority to make decisions.

Marko also clearly hinted that a goal had not been achieved, namely, winning the fifth world title with Max Verstappen. That was clearly a major disappointment for the Austrian. In the coming days, it will become clear whether a night’s sleep will lead him to decide to continue for another year, or to put an end to his illustrious career.

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