Subscribe

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe
Autosport Plus

F1's 70 greatest influencers: 2010s

In the final part of our series celebrating the most influential figures in world championship history, RICHARD WILLIAMS examines a decade in which driver personalities became ever more intertwined with the forces of big business as Formula 1 grew steadily more corporate - and, finally, passed beyond the Bernie Ecclestone era of 'benign dictatorship'...

When the energy-drink billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz arrived in Formula 1, he brought a fellow Styrian with him. Helmut Marko was from Graz, only 40 miles from Murztal, Mateschitz's birthplace. What the two men had in common was ambition, and what Marko brought to the operation was a sharp and ruthless eye for what makes a racing driver. If anyone questioned his judgment, he could point to his own record behind the wheel.

Marko raced in only a handful of grands prix. In the ninth and last of them, at Clermont-Ferrand in 1972, a stone smashed into his helmet and cost the 29-year-old law graduate the use of his left eye. But one achievement had already defined Marko's career as a driver: six weeks before the accident he had finished a close second in the Targa Florio in Sicily, setting a lap record for the 45-mile mountain circuit that would stand in perpetuity.

Previous article Vettel: Ferrari F1 team must be "sly as a fox" to score points in Bahrain GP
Next article Sainz "very angry" as McLaren F1 car issue dents Bahrain GP hopes

More from GP Racing

Why Mohammed Ben Sulayem believes his mission to create a strong FIA is so important

Why Mohammed Ben Sulayem believes his mission to create a strong FIA is so important

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
Why Mohammed Ben Sulayem believes his mission to create a strong FIA is so important Why Mohammed Ben Sulayem believes his mission to create a strong FIA is so important
The military precision involved in bringing F1 broadcasts to life

The military precision involved in bringing F1 broadcasts to life

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
The military precision involved in bringing F1 broadcasts to life The military precision involved in bringing F1 broadcasts to life
The science behind determining F1 suspension set-ups

The science behind determining F1 suspension set-ups

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
The science behind determining F1 suspension set-ups The science behind determining F1 suspension set-ups
Why star-struck Alpine F1 drivers aren't the biggest beneficiary of Zidane's wisdom

Why star-struck Alpine F1 drivers aren't the biggest beneficiary of Zidane's wisdom

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
Why star-struck Alpine F1 drivers aren't the biggest beneficiary of Zidane's wisdom Why star-struck Alpine F1 drivers aren't the biggest beneficiary of Zidane's wisdom
The factors that explain F1’s uniquely conservative driver choices for 2024

The factors that explain F1’s uniquely conservative driver choices for 2024

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
The factors that explain F1’s uniquely conservative driver choices for 2024 The factors that explain F1’s uniquely conservative driver choices for 2024
Who will lead the Mercedes F1 resurgence in 2024?

Who will lead the Mercedes F1 resurgence in 2024?

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
Who will lead the Mercedes F1 resurgence in 2024? Who will lead the Mercedes F1 resurgence in 2024?
The Verstappen standard McLaren wants Norris to reach in F1 2024

The Verstappen standard McLaren wants Norris to reach in F1 2024

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
The Verstappen standard McLaren wants Norris to reach in F1 2024 The Verstappen standard McLaren wants Norris to reach in F1 2024
How Steiner’s exit underlines the changed role of F1’s team bosses

How Steiner’s exit underlines the changed role of F1’s team bosses

Plus
Plus
F1 Formula 1
How Steiner’s exit underlines the changed role of F1’s team bosses How Steiner’s exit underlines the changed role of F1’s team bosses

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe