Laurent Mekies reveals Red Bull Racing’s tribute to co-founder Mateschitz

Speaking during the team’s 2026 livery launch, the 48-year-old highlighted the touching gesture made in honour of the late Mateschitz, emphasising his resilience and immense competitive spirit as the driving force behind Red Bull’s success and its bold step into engine manufacturing with Ford.

“This very first engine is called DM01, in tribute to Mr Mateschitz. It’s his vision, his boldness, it really is the Red Bull spirit, and it is the reason why we are all here today. He made that unbelievable decision at the time to put us onto that route of being completely independent with both the chassis and the power unit,” Mekies said.

“He was not scared by the scale of the challenge, and today we have our opportunity to pay tribute and hopefully make him proud,” he added.

The 2026 F1 season marks the first time since its entry into Formula 1 that the Red Bull outfit shifts from an engine customer team to a manufacturer role.

After calling time on its productive partnership with Japanese engine supplier Honda, the Milton Keynes-based team created the power unit in collaboration with Ford.

Mekies also took time to praise the efforts of the staff of the Red Bull Racing outfit following the livery reveal for the upcoming campaign.

The team principal expressed his delight with the paint scheme, noting that it only heightens his enthusiasm for the new season.

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