I’m constantly perplexed by Dr. Mad Dog Helmut Marko’s role within Red Bull. It seems he possesses a remarkable talent for igniting social media firestorms that capture an astonishing amount of attention, the kind of attention that major marketing agencies would be willing to invest millions in. Frequently referred to as “the Mad Dog” (by me and me alone) this enigmatic figure is presently involved in a relentless bombing campaign aimed at publicly carpet bombing Sergio Perez. The Mad Dog’s objective is to initiate a gradual removal of Perez from the Red Bull driver equation. One can’t help but wonder if the Mad Dog has more worthwhile endeavours to occupy his time.

In a recent media interview conducted by Servus TV, a media outlet owned by Red Bull, the Mad Dog made deeply troubling and racist remarks directed at Sergio Perez and by proxy, Mexico. In summary, the Mad Dog falsely asserted that the Latin temperament and mentality were less robust compared to a misguided belief in Northern European superiority.

Twitter, or if you prefer, “X,” witnessed an outpouring of outrage as even Red Bull supporters and Twitter communities such as @RBR_daily condemned the Mad Dog’s unhinged and unfiltered racism. Hashtags such as #RedBullShit, #RedBullRacist, #WeRacistAsOne, and #HelmutMarkoisracist started trending on the platform. Some Twitter users went as far as likening the Mad Dog, who originates from Austria, to a white supremacist.

Now, it should be noted that I do not know if the Mad Dog is a racist or a white supremacist, I am merely reporting what Twitter users have said on the social media platform. So what did the Mad Dog say? When discussing Perez’s performance following the Italian Grand Prix, the Mad Dog delivered a backhanded compliment followed by a troubling dose of antiquated racism. The subsequent remarks may be disturbing to some readers.

Dr. Mad Dog Helmut Marko, speaking on Servus TV:

“’We know that he has problems in qualifying, he has fluctuations in form, he is South American and he is just not as completely focused in his head as Max (Verstappen) is or as Sebastian (Vettel).”

“But racing is his forte, and he had a very good race. Overtaking three drivers, in George Russell and the Ferraris, was not easy.”

That initial sentence ignited a massive controversy. Even the highly influential F1 publication, The Race, felt compelled to condemn the racist rhetoric and the Mad Dog’s relentless public scrutiny directed at Perez, stating firmly that “it has to stop.” Criticizing a senior figure within Red Bull is a rare move for such a prominent F1-focused digital publication because it jeopardizes the one thing they value most – media access to Red Bull F1.

It appears that the Mad Dog’s unrelenting tactics have now pushed things to an unprecedented extreme. In his recent attempt to humiliate Perez, he symbolically aimed the gun at himself, yet he finds himself unable to pull the trigger, with the firing squad being none other than social media. Marko’s subsequent apology, presumably influenced by Red Bull, has failed to change the situation, underscoring that his initial comments should never have been uttered in the first place.