Red Bull owner and co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz passed away on Saturday, Oct. 22.
He was 78 years old.
According to ESPN, the cause of death has yet to be determined.
Red Bull released this statement earlier today, “In these moments, the over-riding feeling is one of sadness. But soon the sadness will make way for gratitude – gratitude for what he changed, moved, encouraged and made possible for so many individual people.”
Though the Australian-born Mateschitz initially found fame through his role as the public face of Red Bull, he is best known for bringing the company into the sporting world — and most successively, to Formula 1.
The Red Bull Racing team — which Mateschitz was founder and owner of — has secured four constructors’ championships (2010, ’11, ’12, ’13) and six drivers’ titles, including the championship Max Verstappen clinched earlier this month.
