Red Bull’s Marko era ends as 2025 closes with more shockwaves — plus Perez’s jab, Hadjar’s first laps, and a peek at Mercedes’ 2026 trickery
Another day, another bombshell in Milton Keynes. Red Bull GmbH has confirmed Helmut Marko has stepped down as senior adviser, ending a 20‑plus‑year run that shaped the team’s identity as much as its trophy cabinet. The 82-year-old’s exit had been bubbling since Abu Dhabi, when he was conspicuously non‑committal about his future. Now it’s official: the Marko chapter is closed.
If this feels like the last page of a book, that’s because it is. Marko was the talent spotter, the gatekeeper and often the lightning rod for the Red Bull driver programme that ushered in the likes of Max Verstappen. His departure follows a year of churn for the organisation and comes just days after Verstappen lost the 2025 title to Lando Norris. However you cut it, the axis has shifted.
Inside the paddock, the reaction has been part nostalgia, part curiosity. The nostalgia is obvious: Marko’s influence stretched from the junior feeder ranks to the top step on Sunday. The curiosity is over what Red Bull looks like without the hard edges that came with him. Different tone, different tempo, same expectations.
Perez can’t resist a dig
Sergio Perez, never far from the Red Bull discourse even in absentia, couldn’t resist a little drive‑by after Verstappen’s defeat. Asked for his reaction to Max being beaten in the championship, Perez offered a wry “perhaps” when quizzed if he’d been judged too harshly during his own rough patches at the team. Classic Checo — a soft word with a sharp point.
Perez, dropped at the end of last season, will reappear with Cadillac in 2026. Between now and then, the merry‑go‑round continues: Red Bull’s second seat has been a revolving door, with Isack Hadjar signed for ’26 and already getting his first taste of life in navy blue.
Hadjar clocks up miles in Abu Dhabi
Speaking of which, Hadjar made his first official Red Bull outing at the post‑season test in Abu Dhabi, logging 111 laps in the RB21. Post‑season running is the sport’s annual palate cleanser: a little tyre work for Pirelli, a little seat fitting for rookies, and a lot of engineers staring at squiggly lines until nightfall.
Hadjar looked composed, no fuss, no drama — exactly what the big team wants to see when the badge on your chest has expectations baked in. Over at Aston Martin, new 2026 reserve Jak Crawford topped the day’s times, a footnote to most but a handy confidence injection for a young driver about to spend a year in the simulator trenches.
Mercedes give 2026 a test‑drive
Just down the pitlane, Mercedes offered the clearest glimpse yet of 2026 with a front‑wing concept designed to simulate next year’s active aero era. With DRS heading for the history books, the cars will effectively shapeshift from straight‑line sleeks to corner‑hungry downforce monsters on demand. The team ran an innovative wing in Abu Dhabi to stress‑test how those load changes might behave.
Forget the buzzwords; the aim is simple: cleaner racing without artificial band‑aids. Getting there will be anything but simple. Active aero shifts the balance of the car constantly, so the trick is finding the sweet spot without giving drivers a moving target mid‑corner. Expect every team to burn the midnight oil on this over the winter.
McLaren’s title one‑two almost happens
Back to the champions. In the immediate aftermath of Norris sealing the 2025 crown, untelevised radio revealed Zak Brown telling Oscar Piastri he’s “a star” — a small moment that says a lot about McLaren’s inner workings this year. Piastri led the championship from spring into autumn, at one point 34 points clear of his teammate, only to fade to second by 13 at the flag. That’s a kick in the ribs for any driver. It’s also a warning shot to everyone else: McLaren didn’t just build a title‑winner; they built two.
The Norris‑Piastri dynamic was the story of the second half of the season. Norris found rhythm when it mattered most; Piastri will spend the winter staring at a handful of races he’ll feel got away. As problems go, two elite drivers in one garage is one McLaren will happily manage again.
Red Bull’s reset, in real time
Back at Red Bull, the to‑do list is long. Verstappen remains Verstappen — you don’t lose that edge over a winter — but the scaffolding around him has changed. Marko’s exit, the earlier leadership upheaval, and a 2025 defeat that will sting all combine to make this the team’s most intriguing off‑season since it first became a juggernaut.
Is Red Bull evolving or unravelling? That’s the question rivals will ask, and Red Bull will try to answer before the paddock reconvenes. What’s clear is that the ground beneath F1 shifted this year. McLaren set the pace, Mercedes are already living in 2026, and Red Bull’s long‑standing constants aren’t so constant anymore.
Winter usually cools tempers and resets narratives. This one might do the opposite.
