Why is it called Red Bull Ring?

In 2004, billionaire Red Bull owner Dietrich Matteschits purchased what was then known as the A1-Ring, which had hosted the last Austrian Grand Prix the year before. That same year, he bought the Jaguar F1 team and renamed it Red Bull Racing. The circuit was also renamed, predictably, as the Red Bull Ring.

Mateschitz is not only Austrian, but he was born just 60 kilometres from the picturesque track, in Sankt Marein im Murztal. He still lives in Austria, and the headquarters of Red Bull GmbH—the parent company of the racing team and the energy drink—is located near Salzburg.

And now Mateschitz is footing some of the bill to bring grand prix racing back to his homeland. “Ticket revenues will probably cover the cost of staging the race, but not the promoter’s fee,” the Red Bull boss told Autosport‘s Gerhard Kuntschik and Jonathan Noble when the return to Spielberg was announced last July. “That’s my expense.”

Indeed, he is being credited not only with the revival of the race but also with an entire region. Without Mateschitz’s investment, “the area would be completely dead.