Wolff Interested In Offering Marko Position In Mercedes After Possible Suspension At Red Bull

Saturday, 09 March 2024 at 11:30

Mercedes's team principal, Toto Wolff, suggested he would like Helmut Marko to join his team if he had to leave Red Bull Racing.

During the team principal's press conference, Christian Horner tried to draw a line behind all the drama surrounding Red Bull over the recent few weeks.

However, it seems it just can't stop at this point. The biggest news at the moment is that Helmut Marko is apparently being investigated for potentially leaking information to the media concerning Christian Horner's investigation.

The Red Bull Racing team's advisor is possibly facing a suspension, and according to autosport.com, he is supposed to learn his fate during today's (March 9th) meeting with Red Bull's CEO.

Max Verstappen is known to have a very close relationship with the 80-year-old, and he already said after the qualifying on Friday that if Marko were suspended, it would be a "problem" for Red Bull.

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He didn't exactly say it, but he might have been hinting that he would then not be interested in staying with the team. About a week ago, it was leaked to the media that the triple World Champion's contract allegedly contains a clause that would permit him to leave the team under a particular circumstance.

Do you remember what it was? F1 insider suggested that if Helmut Marko were to leave the Austrian team, Verstappen would be freed from his contract and could also go.

The one man who can only profit from this situation is Mercedes's team principal, Toto Wolff. He needs a driver for the 2025 season, and there is possibly no one who could replace Hamilton better than Verstappen.

He could make the German team more attractive to the Dutchman by bringing on Marko (if he was suspended), and he is interested in offering the 80-year-old a non-executive role like Niki Lauda used to hold. He told ORF:

"We're missing our old mascot anyway. Then we'll just take Helmut. He's the right age. He doesn't have a red cap, but then he'll come to us."

"Helmut is not a child of sadness and was - or is - our favourite enemy. But he is a real racer. If they lose Helmut, it will certainly be a loss for Red Bull and for the team."