BREAKING: F1 in mourning after news of legendary figure passing away aged 78

Dietrich Mateschitz, the founder of the F1 Red Bull team, and RB Leipzig football club passed away at age 78.

Dietrich Mateschitz, the man responsible for co-founding the Red Bull energy drink company in 1984, has passed away this Saturday, October 22 at the age of 78. The Austrian billionaire also founded the Red Bull F1 racing team, along with the RB Leipzig football club.

The Austrian had been suffering from illness for a long time and his death has plunged the world of motorsport into mourning this evening. His business acumen saw a string of successful branded sports teams formed all across the globe, as reported by thesun.co.uk.

As a travelling salesman selling Blendax toothpaste, Mateschitz happened upon a drink called Krating Daeng. His foresight turned it into what is now the iconic Red Bull energy drink. He owned 49 per cent of the company when he died.

In 1995, Mateschitz pushed to enter the world of Formula One racing, partnering at the time with Sauber. He created Red Bull Racing in November 2004 when he purchased the Jaguar Racing team from Ford. 

He installed a very young Christian Horner as team principal, making him the youngest to ever run an F1 team. “It is very, very sad, what a great man. He is one of a kind. What he has achieved and done for so many people worldwide is second to none”, commented Horner on the death of the legendary figure.

Mateschitz teamed up with Austrian racing legend Gerhard Berger in 2005 and the pair approached Paul Stoddart and bought his Minardi team, which subsequently became Scuderia Toro Rosso. His Red Bull team recently secured a second consecutive driver’s world title with Dutch driver Max Verstappen taking the crown again.

___________________________________________________________

Thank you for taking the time to read this article. Do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.