He can be your worst nightmare when you're not performing at Red Bull Racing or AlphaTauri, but also your best friend when you're doing well: Helmut Marko. The Red Bull advisor turned 78 years young today.

Marko as a racing driver

Marko was born on April 27 in Graz, Austria. He is inextricably linked with motorsports. He himself started nine Grands Prix in Formula 1, but he never managed to score a point. The Austrian had more success in endurance racing. Together with Gijs van Lennep, he won the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Porsche 917K.

Unfortunately, Marko's motor racing career did not last as long as he had hoped. During the 1972 French Grand Prix, a pebble shot into the air behind Emerson Fittipaldi's car, piercing Marko's visor. He went blind in his left eye and his racing career ended immediately.

Successes off the track

Off the track, the Austrian has had tremendous success. He temporarily ran a racing team in Formula 3 and Formula 3000, as Red Bull junior teams. Later, he became an advisor for Red Bull and is responsible for F1 debuts of Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen, among others. And despite being 78 years old now, he's not done finding talent just yet. Congratulations Helmut!