01/07/2025 21:00
Stake F1 team principal Jonathan Wheatley remembered Red Bull
co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz on what was an "emotional" Austrian
Grand Prix for the 58-year-old. It marked Wheatley's first race at
the Red Bull Ring not as an employee of the Austrian outfit since
working for Renault in 2003, with him having enjoyed considerable
home success at Red Bull. As for Mateschitz, he sadly passed away
on 22 October 2022, the same weekend as that season's United States
Grand Prix. Floods of memories returned for Wheatley over the
weekend, with being at Red Bull's home circuit having reminded him
of Mateschitz, spending time with him and the work he conducted at
the track. The Austrian GP also marked Stake's best weekend of the
season so far and Wheatley's strongest as a team boss. Gabriel
Bortoleto scored his first points as an F1 driver in eighth, whilst
Nico Hulkenberg finished directly behind the Brazilian rookie in
ninth. "Let's talk a little bit about the Red Bull Ring first of
all," Wheatley told select media, including RacingNews365 . "It's a
bit emotional for me here, because I'm always reminded of Dietrich
Mateschitz and the incredible work that he did in this area and
what he did with this circuit. "And, we've had wins here, which
I've got to share with him, and he's such an extraordinary man and
to be here, the circuits always been kind to us, in terms of all
the teams I've worked with, and this is a circuit that Gabby
knows. "It's easy to forget, it's his first year, he hasn't done
this 10,000 hours of TPC testing in a Formula 1 car. He's learning
on the job. He's learning at each track. "And this is a track
that, okay, we thought would suit the car, but it also suits Gabby.
But then every circuit is going to suit him and Nico if the car
keeps performing the way it is."
