20 years. Yes, that’s how long Helmut Marko has been at the heart of Red Bull’s Formula 1 journey, shaping champions and stirring controversy along the way. From Sebastian Vettel’s rise to Max Verstappen’s era of dominance, Marko’s fingerprints are all over the team’s success. But after Max Verstappen’s title loss, the 82-year-old walked away from the team. As Red Bull prepares for a life without its long-time power broker, Marko has finally addressed the one question everyone keeps asking. What happens to Verstappen’s future, now that his mentor Marko, the pioneer of his Red Bull rise, is gone?

Helmut Marko reveals Max Verstappen’s next chapter

For all the champions Helmut Marko has helped shape, none compare to the bond he shares with Max Verstappen. He shared his “most intimate” bond with the driver. As Marko prepares to step away from Red Bull after two decades, his reflections make one thing clear: Verstappen isn’t just the crown jewel of the program; he’s still evolving.

“The connection was certainly a very intense one, or the most intimate, I can’t say,” Marko told Austrian broadcaster ORF. “But it was the closest connection I’ve ever had with a driver. And the fascinating thing was that with each passing year, Max Verstappen became faster, more mature, better. And to this day, I can’t see an end to this development, even though he is already the best driver.”

Marko’s stance is very clear. Verstappen’s journey is far from done. And he’s not just talking about his growth in speed, but his growth in maturity as well. He feels his graph is still going upwards, and even though he’s the best on the field already, there’s no limit to what he can achieve.

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With Red Bull entering a new era in 2026, producing its own power units in partnership with Ford for technical expertise in electric motors, batteries, software, and combustion, Verstappen’s leadership will be critical. At just 28, Marko believes he’s ready. Until 2025, Red Bull used Honda engines, but the Japanese giant is now partnering with Aston Martin for the 2026 season.

“Max has become such a personality that, despite his relatively young age, he leads a team and can lead it the way he does,” Marko explained.

And if you look at Max Verstappen’s F1 career, you’ll realize that he was never a traditional Red Bull Junior Team graduate. Instead, Marko and Christian Horner fast-tracked the teenage prodigy straight into Formula 1 in 2015, betting on raw talent over convention.

Now, over the years, that gamble paid off handsomely, with Verstappen delivering four world championships and redefining what dominance looks like in the modern era.

Marko admitted there were early growing pains. “We hardly ever had any differences of opinion. There were a few silly things, especially in the early stages,” he said, noting how success gradually calmed Verstappen’s approach. Lastly, he also revealed the emotional weight of his exit, explaining Verstappen wasn’t present when the decision was finalized.

“Max should have been there too. There were some problems with his flight, so he wasn’t there.” Marko explained. “I called him the next day. It wasn’t a normal conversation. There was a certain melancholy in the air. He said he never could have imagined that he would ever achieve such success.”

Illness forces Verstappen to skip FIA gala

For a driver who is almost always front and center at Formula 1’s biggest moments, Max Verstappen’s absence at the FIA Awards in Tashkent raised eyebrows. The reason, however, was far less dramatic than speculation might suggest. Red Bull confirmed that Max Verstappen was struck down by seasonal flu, forcing him to miss Friday night’s end-of-season gala in the Uzbek capital.

As one of the top three finishers in the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship, Verstappen was expected to share the spotlight with newly crowned champion Lando Norris and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. The Dutchman narrowly lost the title to Norris and finished runner-up, making his presence at the ceremony almost a formality. Instead, Dutch outlet De Telegraaf reported that Verstappen fell ill following a visit to Red Bull’s Milton Keynes factory and opted not to travel to Central Asia on medical advice.

Beyond the podium celebrations, Max Verstappen also had individual recognition on the line. The 28-year-old was nominated for the FIA Action of the Year award thanks to his daring opening-lap move on Oscar Piastri at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. Sweeping around the outside of the polesitter into Tamburello, Verstappen seized the lead in a moment that ultimately defined his race victory at Imola and became one of the standout overtakes of the season.

His no-show in Tashkent also stood in contrast to last year’s appearance at the FIA gala in Kigali, Rwanda. In 2024, Verstappen attended under very different circumstances, having been ordered to carry out community service as punishment for swearing during a Singapore Grand Prix press conference. That trip saw him assist with grassroots initiatives and help promote the FIA’s Affordable Cross Car project.

Earlier on the same day as the awards, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem was re-elected unopposed for a second four-year term, adding another layer of significance to a night Verstappen ultimately had to watch from afar.

In the end, missing the ceremony changes little for Max Verstappen. The season is over, his performances spoke loudly enough on track, and with 2026 looming large, Marko’s words for him will surely come to light.