Helmut Marko, advisor to Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz has warned that the company could quit F1.

In the wake of a disappointing performance which saw one car fail to make the start and the other battle hard to finish a distant sixth, whilst team boss Christian Horner appeared to spit the dummy and launch into an 'it's not fair' tirade aimed at Mercedes and the FIA, Marko took things a little further.

"We will evaluate the situation again in the summer as every year and look into costs and revenues," he is quoted as saying by the Austrian media.

"If we are totally dissatisfied we could contemplate an F1 exit," he added. "The danger is there that Mr Mateschitz loses his passion for F1."

Keen not to appear as though the 'threat' was the work of a sore loser (as if!), the Austrian added. "These power units are the wrong solution for Formula One, and we would say this even if Renault were in the lead. The technical rules are not understandable, they are much too complicated, and too expensive.

"We are governed by an engineers' formula," he concluded. "We wanted cost reduction too, but it is not happening like this. A designer like Adrian Newey is castrated by this engine formula. These rules will kill the sport."

Of course, with Red Bull owning two teams such a move would send shockwaves through the paddock and beyond.

While some are expressing shock, nay horror, it is something that Pitpass has warned of for years. For Mateschitz and his company F1 was always a promotional exercise, it was never about sentiment or passion for the sport.

When the company first bought the Jaguar team it kicked new life into the paddock, even if it did mean some ludicrous publicity opportunities and the dreaded Formula Una girls.

Then, suddenly things got serious. Big names were recruited in terms of management and technical staff, suddenly Red Bull was a {i]bona fide racing team.

In time came success, lots of it, and courtesy of this and relationships with the likes of Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosley, Mateschitz’ team became a big political player in the sport also.

However, as any team will tell you, F1 is a roller coaster and nobody wins forever. Along with the glory years there will be seasons spent languishing much further down the grid. This, of course, is when most teams show their mettle.

Having won successive titles, it was inevitable that the pendulum of success would swing in someone else's favour.

Williams, which has known more than its fair share of success over the years, fell into decline, and for a while there were fears that it would become another casualty of a sport which, despite the talk, has no time for sentiment. However, without spending big bucks it doesn't have, merely by appointing the right people and knuckling down, the Grove outfit has risen again.

However, this is because Williams raison d'etre is racing, it is in its DNA.

At heart, Red Bull always was and always will be a publicity hungry energy drink company.

Whilst Mateschitz ponders his teams futures, the sport's powers that be must take note. Whilst they cannot be held to ransom, perhaps this is the time for a complete and thorough overall of a sport that has fully lost its way.

Not that long ago, when some were pushing the idea of three-car teams, Red Bull was being put forward as one of the chosen teams.

Which beggars the question, just how short-sighted are the people running this sport.

Chris Balfe

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by F One, 17/03/2015 18:52

"Don't let the door hit you on your way out Red Bull."

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2. Posted by Hobgoblin, 17/03/2015 13:49

"ok - a bit more seriously. Why not just scrap the tokens idea for engine development, allow Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault and Honda to develop at will, but on the proviso that they provide the same spec engine to all of their customer teams and do not charge them any more than they are currently paying. That way, if they want to develop their engines, then it is at their sole cost."

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3. Posted by Hobgoblin, 17/03/2015 10:47

"Dear Customer,
Please will you reign in all of your other suppliers as I'm not doing my job properly.
Thanks,
CH"

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4. Posted by GordonW, 16/03/2015 23:01

"Mmmm - it is said that Honda only came back to F1 because of the new engine rules. With their performance (or rather lack of) in pre-season testing and in the Grand Prix in Melbourne, I think the chances of me buying a Honda road car in the next few years has reduced - to virtually zero...."

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5. Posted by Historian, 16/03/2015 18:30

"I have been a fan of F1 from about 1960 or so and thus have seen many changes to this sport over the decades. And the sport has always had teams with more resources than other on the grid. 2015 to me was vert dismal year for F1 and in fact years leading up to the 2015 year have been disheartening to watch, these are not the Golden Years of the sport and will not be remembered as such. And the 2016 year is picking up wher 2015 left off. I only watched about half of the telecast, a total bore and waste of my time and at 72 now have precious few years left to watch F1 is today. If this keeps up and Red Bull pulls out and goes to the American series IRL. Then most likely Ferrari will not be far behind and if so thats the end of F1 as we know it. We all want to see competition not parade lap after parade lap. These new F1 cars sound absolutely awful and are damn near butt ugly. This year thus far I just can't get into it."

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6. Posted by nonickname, 16/03/2015 16:37

"As per my mail below ...I just wish Red Bull would post notice of their intention to quit at the soonest possible time. Then the sxxt would hit the fan and reason would come into force."

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7. Posted by nonickname, 16/03/2015 16:31

"A simple formula.....
1....Fixed min mpg....150 kg per race at room temp
2...500 kg weight.
3.. Max down force set at 1000kg at 300kph (or similar)
4...Tyres free ...i.e if you choose softs you use softs. If you choose soft front and hard back, that is it. As many sets as you need.
5.. No more than 5 crew on the pit at any time,except for emergency(that will cut costs dramatically)
6..Engines free. If you can make rotary that works on the effeciancy as above. WELL DONE.
As many engines as you need
7..Gearboxes free.
8.. Motor homes.Not to exceed a fixed amount.

Don't think anyone would agree.
"

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8. Posted by carnut, 16/03/2015 16:18

"It's Bernie's time....he needs to go no matter what he has done for F1 decades before. And these "green" engines need to go with him. So many of my friends & I would love to see much simpler body designs with small V8's than remember how to sing!!"

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9. Posted by carnut, 16/03/2015 16:13

"When we all learn that the only "constant" in life is change!"

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10. Posted by nonickname, 16/03/2015 15:19

"Oops.. pressed the wrong button.
I was saying, Please read the article by Chris. It is another one of his excellent reports.The marketing brief to the PR/Advertising department of Red Bull would be : Get the best coverage and image possible for our brand" It would be worded differently but the meaning would be the same. I have been in Media/ advertising for 40 years so I have seen the briefs.Why should Red Bull carry on? It is not about "passion" or history, they are a BRAND looking at exposure, the same way as Colgate's, or any other brand would do. They will balance the return, on the publicity...and that is very poor at the moment.
The fault does not, entirely, lay with the normal scapegoat, B. E. but with the idiots at the FIA who are below the radar.
An idiot who shall be called tadpole ..as in small toad, has pushed and manipulated the rules to suit himself,and when the sxxt hits the fan we all blame Bernie, who has done the sport(yes and himself) more good than anyone else.
Lets askToad why he has allowed F1 to get to where it is. He is to blame as ALL the team principles are looking after their own problems. The Fia are completely to blame for what is going on."

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11. Posted by nonickname, 16/03/2015 15:03

"earned cash pushing a failing campaign? And F1 is a failing"

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12. Posted by the dodger, 16/03/2015 13:57

" I feel it is a shame that Christian Horner is loosing his memory, for 4 years red bull was wiping the board with everyone wining 4 drives championships and 4 constructor's championships.

I suppose that we must forget about that, maybe if Mr Horner is a bad loser maybe it is time for him to get out of F1 ad go fishing, and leave F1 to the real men"

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13. Posted by RP, 16/03/2015 13:28

"It is a shame to hear Christian Horner's statements and the Red Bull threat to leave the sport. I do believe the new rules have been poorly conceived - the elimination of in season testing and reducing opportunities for engine development. Mercedes got things very right with the engine and chassis and there should be no artificial changes to penalize them. When Ross Brawn arrived with the blown diffuser, he had a very strong advantage. By the end of the season, things had become equal.
One might expect the complexity of the current power units has increased developmental costs. o much for reducing costs. To try and maintain relevance to road car power plants is nice but the current rules condemn the rest of the field from an opportunity to improve their cars. Renault really has blown it and Red Bull's problems are related to that. Nothing else. It doesn't seem right that the season is over but it is. 19 races to go, 19 races for Mercedes to lose. No one is going to beat them hamstrung with their current equipment."

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14. Posted by John VFR, 16/03/2015 11:27

"In my opinion they (Red Bull) are sore loosers,end of.
Williams knuckled down and dragged themselves back to the front,McLaren are in the process,Ferrari are in the process and not a word of complaint from any of them.
The difference? Red Bull are about marketing,the others are racers,and in times like these doesn't it show!"

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15. Posted by REV, 16/03/2015 9:53

"Who cares. These red bull guys, Marko and Mateschitz are just a bunch of sour old men! What we need are more cheerful, charismatic guys like Ron Dennis... Hey wait..."

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