F1 News: Helmut Marko’s Reputation Takes 2nd Big Hit in 1 Year as Axed Red Bull Junior Driver Highlights “Brutally Honest” Treatment

Helmut Marko was not given the name Dr. Marko for no reason. Although he has a doctorate in law, his extensive knowledge of F1 made the name stick. His evolution from an F1 racer to the current director of the Red Bull F1 Team and the head of the Red Bull Junior program was no coincidence. It was a display of skill and knowledge, but while he has attained his position in the team, he has also gathered quite a reputation around the tracks.

Today, at the age of 80, Helmut Marko holds the responsibility of directing the current leading team in Formula 1. However, he has faced criticism for instances where he has been perceived as overly harsh with his drivers. In 2023, Jaime Alguersuari called Marko out, accusing him of blowing a situation out of proportion. It appears that Marko has found himself at the end of critical judgment from former Red Bull Junior Team (RBJT) driver, Jak Crawford.

Jak Crawford talks about Marko’s to-the-point personality

During an interview with Racer magazine, Jak Crawford, who was part of the RBJT from 2020 till the end of 2023, recalls receiving a contract offer from Dr. Helmut Marko at the age of 14 after just one day of testing at the Red Bull Ring. Beyond that, Crawford mentions several things about working with Helmut Marko, like work pressure, communication style, and his experience with Red Bull. But one thing that caught everyone’s eye was his take on Marko’s brutal honesty.

In the interview, Crawford recalled meeting Marko. While discussing the Austrian’s communication style, he said, “He’s very busy, so you end up waiting on him. And then you sit there and he just walks up, and then he says, ‘So…’ in a very deep voice! Then he asks ‘What happened?’ And his conversations are very short, very straight to the point.” Crawford added, “Sometimes he’s brutally honest. That’s the right way to say it. Sometimes it can be too brutally honest, where it can be unfair at times if you want to say, but it’s not so bad. To me it was very, very short, and very to the point.”

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Crawford highlighted the brutally honest nature of Marko and how sometimes as a young driver it might come off as unfair. But in the end, the 18-year-old continues to describe his experience as a Red Bull driver after saying that the honesty is not that bad. Helmut has been a strong deciding factor about what Crawford’s career should play out as, the American tells Racer “Me and my dad and my manager, we have all these talks about what we want to do, the ideal situation, blah, blah, blah. And then that never happened. It never turned out that way.” 

While this incident was one of lesser friction, the same could not be said about what happened in 2023 with Jaime Alguersuari.

Jaime Alguersuari brings up a decade-old incident with Helmut Marko

Alguersuari raced for Toro Rosso during the era when Red Bull, led by Sebastian Vettel, was dominant in Formula 1. The incident in question occurred during the third free practice at the Korean Grand Prix. Alguersuari spoke to AS and believed the situation was unfair as he had a car capable of finishing 14th, but he was performing well in the 7th and 8th positions during the practice session.

Alguersuari explained that there was a strict team order to always let the Red Bulls, including Sebastian Vettel, pass. Despite complying with this order twice by letting Vettel pass, Alguersuari decided to focus on his own clean lap in the closing minutes of the practice session.

Helmut approached Alguersuari after the practice session and he reproached Jamie in front of everyone in the team’s box. The Spanish driver told AS, “It was just a free practice, not even a qualifying. Marko came to the box to reproach me, in front of everyone, with a childish attitude, as if saying ‘I want them to record me so everyone knows who’s in charge here’.” This shows how Marko tried to assert dominance over the rest of the team, which according to Alguersuari was childish.

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Being called out by two racers from Red Bull might feel like Marko is being criticized for his behavior. However, what is to be noted is that Marko would not be known as himself if it wasn’t for his skills. Additionally, the personality that comes with those skills is an integral part of his identity. That said, do you think Helmut is unjust towards his drivers? Let us know what you think in the comments below.