No one in the F1 paddock holds more command over junior drivers than Red Bull team advisor, Helmut Marko. The Austrian is notorious for his strict demeanor and early morning phone calls with his young recruits. Naturally, when the notification pops up on their phones, they better respond.
But Red Bull’s latest academy graduate, Isack Hadjar missed arguably the most important Marko phone call of his entire career.
In a feature with F1 presenter, Laura Winter, the French-Algerian driver revealed how the Austrian had called him at 7 AM to inform him that he had been chosen to race alongside Yuki Tsunoda at RB for the 2025 season.
Fellow rookie, Oliver Bearman joked that if he hadn’t picked up the call he would have been fired! That’s when Hadjar revealed, “I did not answer actually. I was sleeping!” But Marko was perhaps a bit desperate to find a teammate for Tsunoda for 2025.
Apparently, the 81-year-old, along with Christian Horner, had been deliberating about dropping Sergio Perez, following his horrific showing last season. Liam Lawson, who was partnered up with Tsunoda for the business end of the 2024 campaign, got the heads-up to replace Perez at the Milton Keynes outfit, which paved the way for Hadjar at RB.
Luckily for Hadjar, Marko called him back again when they ratified their driver lineup situation at Red Bull.
“He [then] called me after Abu Dhabi [GP]. He said ‘tomorrow come to Faenza, you need to sign that contract’,” explained the 20-year-old.
The Red Bull junior academy is one of the most sought-after destinations for young drivers. However, not all Red Bull junior drivers have been able to earn an F1 call-up, owing to the high benchmark of performance and skill.
This is partly also because of Marko, and how he likes to run a tight ship — with these early morning calls being a common occurrence.
Lawson debunks Marko’s ‘early morning’ phone calls
Marko is notorious in the motorsport community for being a feared taskmaster. His tactics have definitely hardened many young drivers, some of which have gone on to garner great success in the sport — with Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen winning multiple titles and Daniel Ricciardo winning eight Grands Prix.
One such tool in Marko’s arsenal is his infamous early morning phone conversations. According to Lawson, the Austrian uses this method to ensure that his drivers are always on their toes.
“Probably the best thing for me was the last five years being a Red Bull Junior, the phone calls from Helmut at 7 am, putting the pressure on. The threat of losing your career at 16, if you don’t perform in this next race — that’s really helped build me for Formula 1,” he explained as per Planet F1.
So, while there are many people in the paddock who have criticized the Austrian for his methods, it cannot be ignored that he has transformed the Red Bull junior academy into the most successful organization in all of motorsport.
