Sadness at Marko for deceased: 'The first was Niki Lauda'

Helmut Marko still suffers daily from the death of Dietrich Mateschitz. The Austrian co-founder of Red Bull died last October at the age of 78, and that news hit Marko hard, he told RTL Deutschland.

Mateschitz was the big man behind Red Bull Racing. Partly due to his work, the Austrian formation managed to successfully make the switch to Formula 1 in 2005 and be successful there too by winning six world titles as yet.

Marko was involved in the Austrians' project since the early stages and developed an excellent contact with Mateschitz. When he was told in late 2022 that Mateschitz had passed away, the Red Bull adviser had to take a hard hit that he is struggling to deal with.

On several occasions in recent years, Marko had to deal with the loss of a close friend, leaving him with a down period personally. "The first was Niki Lauda, who I was friends with and worked with for decades," he points to 2019.

However, the former Formula 1 driver wants to turn the grief for Mateschitz into positivism. "We want to build on the successes of 2022, continue with the team in Dietrich's legacy and defend the world championship with this spirit."