Max Verstappen set to lose another F1 ally with Helmut Marko exit

Helmut Marko is expected to leave Red Bull ahead of the 2026 F1 season.

According to Sky Sports News and reputable Dutch publication De Telegraaf, Marko will leave the team imminently.

The 82-year-old has played a key role in Red Bull’s success over the years, spearheading their junior programme.

Marko has been responsible for bringing through Sebastian Vettel, Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo.

The Austrian is a key Verstappen ally, with the four-time world champion publicly declaring his loyalty to Marko last year.

Marko’s exit would be the latest high-profile Red Bull departure.

Christian Horner was replaced by Laurent Mekies as team principal earlier this year.

Before that, Red Bull lost Jonathan Wheatley to Sauber, while Adrian Newey quit for Aston Martin.

Verstappen’s future continues to remain a hot topic, despite his commitment to Red Bull for 2026.

Verstappen flirted with the idea of joining Mercedes before announcing he would remain at Red Bull ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Without Marko - and with a potentially difficult 2026 campaign looming due to Red Bull running its own power unit for the first time - Verstappen could be on the driver market for 2027.

However, Dutch journalist Erik van Haren, who is close to the Verstappen camp, says it has no impact on the driver’s immediate future.

Speaking after the Abu Dhabi GP, team principal Mekies hailed Marko for his support.

“Helmut has been incredible in how supportive he has been into helping us turning around things this year.

“Obviously, him and top management had quite a few difficult decisions to make in the year, and of course, we always know F1 is not a static environment. You always adjust your organisations.

“It applies to technical, it applies to sporting, and it’s completely normal that we review how we can improve the way we operate all the time. I’m not saying that specifically for Helmut, but I’m saying that in general, we are in an environment where we always challenge each other and look for the next steps, no matter how small it is in trying to work together.

“But I can only thank Helmut for the role he has played into making fundamentally better what looked like a difficult situation mid-season.”

Marko’s ‘antics’

The exact reason for Marko’s exit has been reported by De Limburger.

They claim Marko went rogue and signed Alex Dunne to their driver academy.

Dunne announced his shock exit from McLaren earlier this year amid reports of Red Bull’s interest.

According to the aforementioned report, Red Bull weren’t aware of Dunne’s signing.

“Marko knew that it had already been decided by shareholders, team boss Laurent Mekies and sporting director Mintzlaff that Dunne would not be an option for the junior program. Without anyone knowing it, Marko signed the Irishman anyway,” the report reads.

Red Bull allegedly had to pay Dunne off as Marko was instructed to terminate the contract.

Marko was also in the spotlight following the Qatar Grand Prix.

He alleged that Kimi Antonelli had let Lando Norris through on-track deliberately.

His comments contributed to the hate and death threats the Mercedes driver received.