Helmut Marko: "Red Bull must only focus on Formula 1"

After a perfect start to the season for Red Bull, the Austrian team has seen its championship lead shrink in the last few races, due to a car that is becoming less and less competitive, which has not won since the Spanish Grand Prix six races ago. This slowdown can be explained by issues with the car's balance and a lack of correlation between the track and the wind tunnel, disrupting the development of the RB16 and leading to new problems, such as the balance issue observed during the Zandvoort and Monza weekends. These results are starting to worry many observers who are questioning the team's short-term future. Dr. Helmut Marko, in charge of the young driver program for the Austrian brand, spoke about this matter.

The example of McLaren and Williams: mistakes to avoid

The Austrian warns against spreading efforts towards other disciplines, a mistake that had cost McLaren and Williams dearly in the past. These two teams had seen their performances drop after concentrating their financial efforts on other projects, which had resulted in a decrease in competitiveness in Formula 1.

After experiencing successful 1990s full of titles and trophies, these two teams had gradually declined in the hierarchy, especially Grove, which even had a blank 2020 season. On McLaren's side, the arrival of the new regulations in 2014 and Honda's arrival the following year plunged the Woking team into a crisis that they managed to overcome.

A complete renewal at Red Bull

For Helmut Marko, Red Bull must not repeat this mistake and insists on the importance of keeping Formula 1 as the top priority, especially as the team is about to embark on a real revolution with many departures and the arrival of Ford in 2026, making the Milton Keynes team a factory team manufacturing its own engines. If you look back in the past, every time Williams or McLaren started to focus on something other than Formula 1, their performances dropped, Marko explained in the Inside Line F1 podcast. So, in our opinion, we must stay focused on Formula 1.

« Yes, we will make the RB17, which is a very special car designed by Adrian Newey, but I think it's a unique project. We are also involved in the America's Cup [sailing] and other similar projects, but the focus must remain on Formula 1. And I think the next step will be that we will have our own engine, which is a huge project, both financially and in terms of management. » Despite all these changes, Red Bull's goals remain the same: to prepare well for 2026 and win races and titles.

The intentions are still as great.

« In the future, our goal will be to win races. Yes, to win with our own engine and always be a reference. The main goal is to win, but to do it in a way that introduces new fuels, that shows a new aspect of the sport to the public, and to be different. » This is a very ambitious project wanted by the team led by Christian Horner, especially as it seems to be on a downward trend lately, with teams like McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes capable of competing, or even surpassing them. Nonetheless, they are confident in their strengths and rely on the upcoming regulations to return to the top.