Red Bull’s Helmut Marko is one of the great talent spotters in motorsport. Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel are his defining success stories.
Vettel joined Toro Rosso for the 2008 season and, on the back of an extraordinary maiden win at Monza, graduated to Red Bull for 2009. He won the championship in his second season with the team, starting a run of four in succession.
Just over a decade later, Verstappen joined Vettel among the top five youngest champions in F1 history. He’s now surpassed the German for total victories (63 vs 53) and could beat him for titles this year too.
Both of these drivers met Marko’s incredibly high standards. Those who haven’t often find themselves without a seat after 12 months, or even six.
The latest driver to line up alongside Verstappen is Liam Lawson. His promotion after just 11 Grands Prix highlights Red Bull’s renewed willingness to promote young talent.
Reflecting on his journey to F1, Lawson said he struggled to deal with Marko’s phonecalls. The Austrian would often ring him at 6am after a bad weekend and warn him his place in the Red Bull programme was at risk.
Vitantonio Liuzzi says Helmut Marko would often start ‘shouting’ down the phone
Speaking on The Inside Line F1 Podcast, former Red Bull driver Vitanonio Liuzzi shared his perspective on Marko’s communication style. The Italian featured for the newly-established team during the 2005 season alongside David Coulthard as part of a unique seat-sharing arrangement with Christian Klien.
Liuzzi earned a shot in F1 after winning the Formula 3000 title. He’d been part of the Red Bull junior set up since 2002.
But he found Marko hard to predict. Some calls were designed to be a dialogue, and others a rebuke.
Still, Liuzzi appreciates his directness. He raced full-time for Toro Rosso in 2006 and 2007 before a move to Force India.
“Of course, with Dr Marko, the conversations were always very short and direct,” he said. “Everybody knows how he is.
- READ MORE: Who is Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko? Everything to know
“And I have to say that at the beginning, when I entered the motorsport world, and I had to deal with him, you see Dr Marko’s name on the phone when he’s ringing you, you start shaking. You never know in which mood he’s going to answer.
“Sometimes you open the phone and he’s shouting, and sometimes it’s an open conversation. I liked to deal with him because he was such a straight person. With him, white is white, black is black.”
Helmut Marko has already identified the next driver to leave the Red Bull family
Verstappen maintains a close bond with Marko a decade on from his F1 debut. He recently described him as ‘my discoverer and my sponsor’.
In fact, Verstappen says Marko must stay at Red Bull, otherwise he’ll leave. That puts the 81-year-old in a unique position of power.
Isack Hadjar is the latest graduate to be put to the test as he slots in alongside Yuki Tsunoda at Racing Bulls. But it could be a short-lived partnership.
Marko already wants Arvid Lindblad to replace Tsunoda for 2026. Red Bull’s relationship with Honda will come to an end, which will cost the Japanese driver his biggest backer.
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