F1 team to keep ’independence’ under new CEO

Red Bull Racing will continue to enjoy "independence" under new management in the wake of the energy drink company’s founder Dietrich Mateschitz.

The successful Formula 1 team was the late Mateschitz’s brainchild, but it has now passed into the hands of his 29-year-old son Mark.

It emerges that the CEO role will be split into three, with the chief executive of the German football club Red Bull Leipzig now set to be in charge of Red Bull’s sports activities - including the two F1 teams.

Dr Helmut Marko, who was the closest contact between Mateschitz and the premier F1 team, said Red Bull Racing is "the strongest and most efficient marketing tool in the entire group".

"We have worked very independently in the past," he is quoted by motorsport-magazin.com.

"It has already come out that the new management wants to continue the Formula 1 activities with a relatively strong independence."

Red Bull had explored entering into a works engine collaboration with Porsche for 2026 and beyond, but those talks broke down over the VW brand’s desire for 50 percent influence.

Alternative talks to current technical partner Honda are now taking place.

"Negotiations are underway," Marko told Auto Motor und Sport. "But Honda is not our only option. We have learned our lessons from the Porsche negotiation.

"It will certainly not be a 50-50 solution."

He said he isn’t sure if Honda is receptive to sharing the technical responsibilities between the Japanese carmaker and Red Bull’s own ’Red Bull Powertrains’ subsidiary.

"That’s the beauty of the Japanese," the 79-year-old smiled. "You sit together. They nod politely. But nothing is said.

"In the end, if they hadn’t left, we could have saved the whole investment," Marko added, referring to Red Bull’s preparations to be able to go it alone from 2026.