Red Bull Empire Co-owner, F1 Team Owner Dietrich Mateschitz Dies at 78

Dietrich Mateschitz, the co-owner of the Red Bull empire which fields two teams in Formula 1, has died aged 78 after a long illness.

Mateschitz co-founded Red Bull in the 1980s alongside Thai entrepreneur Chaleo Yoovidhya, having recognized the potential of an energy drink while visiting the country. Red Bull used an aggressive marketing strategy in extreme sports and this led to a sponsorship partnership with Sauber in Formula 1 from the mid-1990s.

Red Bull eventually branched out into team ownership as it acquired Jaguar Racing in 2004 when it was put up for sale by Ford, and a year later it took control of the backmarker Minardi squad, naming it Toro Rosso.

Toro Rosso picked up the first victory for a Red Bull-owned team in Italy in 2008, with youngster Sebastian Vettel triumphing in wet conditions. A year later, Red Bull emerged as a front-running force under new regulations and took four successive titles with Vettel between 2010 and 2013.

Having played second fiddle to Mercedes for several years it returned to the top of the standings with Max Verstappen beating Lewis Hamilton to the 2021 title.

Verstappen wrapped up his second title, and the sixth for a Red Bull driver, in Japan, while Red Bull stands on the brink of its fifth Constructors’ crown and first since 2013.

Both Vettel and Verstappen owe a large part of their career to Red Bull, which for two decades has had a young driver program, funneling potential talents through junior categories and into Formula 1 with Toro Rosso, which in 2020 was renamed AlphaTauri.

Along with Vettel and Verstappen, the likes of Daniel Ricciardo, Carlos Sainz and Pierre Gasly have all come through Red Bull’s junior driver program and gone on to win grands prix.

Mateschitz also invested heavily in his native Austria, buying the A1 Ring circuit that had fallen into disrepair, and renovating it under the Red Bull brand.

The Austrian Grand Prix has featured on the calendar since 2014 and in both 2020 and 2021 held two grands prix to assist Formula 1 with the pandemic.

“It is desperately sad news that we’ve learned of the passing of Dietrich,” said Red Bull Racing Team Principal Christian Horner. “He was a remarkable man, what he’s done for so many, not just in Formula 1 but in the Red Bull business and the Red Bull world across all the sporting platforms. He was a man that inspired so much. He is the reason that we are here, it was his passion for Formula 1 and his vision that is the reason he has two teams in the Formula 1 pit lane. He was always enthusiastic, encouraging and supportive on the good days and the bad days.

“So many owe him so much and I feel privileged to have known him and I think for the whole team now, despite the shock, we are going to do exactly what he would have wanted, which is to go out there and with his cars do the very best that we can and to try and close the constructors’ championship down. It’s important that we recognise everything he has contributed to the sport, but not just the sport because it goes way, way beyond that.”

“I am deeply saddened by the news that Dietrich Mateschitz, a hugely respected and much-loved member of the Formula 1 family has passed away,” said Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.

“He was an incredible visionary entrepreneur and a man who helped to transform our sport and created the Red Bull brand that is known all around the world. I will miss him greatly, as will the whole community in Formula 1, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, and the Red Bull and AlphaTauri teams at this very sad time.”

Compatriot Toto Wolff, the Mercedes Team Principal, also paid tribute.

“It is with great sadness that we have learned of the passing of one of the greatest and most visionary entrepreneurs in the world,” he said. “What Dietrich Mateschitz did for Formula 1 was unprecedented – and we send our deepest condolences to his family and friends.”