People MotoGP: Death of Dietrich Mateschitz, creator of Red Bull

The death of Dietrich Mateschitz was announced on Saturday evening, October 22, in an internal email at the Austrian company. Born on May 20, 1944 in Styria into a family of teachers, the creator of Red Bull, who was considered Austria's first fortune, died at the age of 78.

It was during a trip to Hong Kong that the marketing director of a toothpaste manufacturer discovered the effects of energy drinks, then common in Asia. He then joined forces with Thai businessman Chaleo Yoovidhya to create Red Bull in 1984.

The rest, we know it, the rapid expansion of the beverage creating his immense personal fortune (more than 20 billion) but, as far as we are concerned, above all making it possible to boost extreme sports, mechanical or not.

Today, Red Bull employs more than 13 people in 000 countries to sell nearly 172 billion cans per year. The turnover of around 10 billion euros has direct repercussions in motor sports, in F8 but also in the sport that fascinates us, not only among the compatriots of KTM but also among most of the MotoGP champions, from Marc Márquez to Johann Zarco, including Jack Miller, Jorge Martín, Miguel Oliveira, Brad Binder, Álex Márquez, Takaaki Nakagami, Raúl Fernández, Enea Bastianini and Fabio Di Giannantonio.

At the other end of the pyramid, we will also mention the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, and the Austrian firm is also involved in all the other categories as well as in most extreme, even very extreme, sports: How to forget free fall since the space during which the Austrian Felix Baumgartner broke the sound barrier in 2012?

Dietrich Mateschitz created a monster and left us. Let's hope that he respects his wishes and perpetuates his formidable media strategy...

Before the Malaysian Grand Prix, the paddock gathered on the track did a minute of applause in his honor (at 21 minutes in the video).