Mystery about Marko’s absence in Austria

Helmut Marko, who saw it? A couple of months ago Helmut Marko was appointed ambassador of the Red Bull Ring and his presence in the paddock for this weekend’s F1 race was announced.
This was news, because the 83-year-old from Graz has never returned to the paddock since the 2025 Abu Dhabi GP, his last race in Red Bull colors after 20 years of fruitful collaboration between the parties. But Marko is not present at Zeltweg this weekend and his absence has obviously not gone unnoticed. The Germans from Bild were the first to highlight this defection and asked: “Is he perhaps trying to avoid the meeting with the Red Bull management?”. The great Red Bull bosses in Austria In fact, in addition to the sporting director Oliver Mintzlaff, the two owners, Mark Mateschitz and Chalerm Yoovidhya, are expected at the Austrian Grand Prix, and that was enough to give rise to these rumors. Certainly Graz, where Marko lives, is just an hour’s drive from the Red Bull Ring and the separation between the parties – announced as amicable – still saw a credit to the Austrian’s account equal to 10 million euros, or the entire salary expected from the last year of the contract. When asked by the German F1-Insider, Helmut Marko cut it short: “I’m not avoiding anyone”, without adding further details on his absence for the Formula 1 race.
What is certain is that this weekend too, Marko will see the exploits of his protégé Max Verstappen from the comfort of his sofa at home…

Automobile Magazine – Formula1 English, News

2026-06-27 05:00:00