Helmut Marko returns with new F1 role

Helmut Marko, 2025, generic, Red Bull Racing — Photo: © IMAGO

Helmut Marko returns with new F1 role

Helmut Marko recently retired

Originally written by Sam Cook. This version is a translation.

Friday 10 April 2026 17:01

Former Red Bull F1 advisor Helmut Marko has landed a new role in the sport, returning in a one-off job.

Marko retired from Red Bull at the end of 2025 from the role which he had held since 2005, which was Red Bull's first year as an F1 team.

He brought through a plethora of talent in his time at Red Bull, including four-time world champions Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel, and eight-time grand prix winner Daniel Ricciardo.

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Now, 82-year-old Marko has taken up a new role within F1, although he'll be grateful that it does not mean he'll be travelling to all 22 races on the F1 calendar.

Marko has been announced in a press conference to be the new ambassador for the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, home of the Austrian Grand Prix.

Speaking in an official press conference announcing the news, Marko said: "I’m delighted with this new role. I’ve been involved for a long time. Thanks to my age, I was there right at the start: 1969, 1970, the first grand prix. There was incredible enthusiasm. And then, with Red Bull’s return, it entered a whole new dimension. It’s a magnificent setting, with impressive architecture: the Domenig pit building.

"The organisation is very accessible to the public. When you travel the world, you really learn to appreciate how well everything works here. The prices are reasonable too."

When is the 2026 Austrian GP?

Marko will not have to wait too long for F1 to visit his home country, with the Austrian GP fast approaching on June 28.

The Red Bull Ring signed a contract extension with F1 last year which means that it will remain on the calendar until at least the 2041 season, meaning there is plenty of work for Marko to do in the next few years.

But it's not the F1 that Marko is most looking forward to about his new role. When asked in the press conference which event brings him the most excitement, the 82-year-old surprisingly said: "MotoGP! You can see two-thirds of the circuit from most of the grandstands.

"It's still a very tough sport. Sometimes you see them fighting, sliding, and leaving black marks on the asphalt. The lean angles and how they lean into the corners are incredible; Marc Marquez showed me two years ago how badly his leathers were scraped."

F1 Red Bull Helmut Marko Austrian Grand Prix Red Bull Ring