Dr Helmut Marko has admitted the chances are high that Red Bull’s stolen F1 trophies will be lost forever.
The team confirmed at the weekend that a ram-raid on its Milton-Keynes factory early on Saturday morning resulted in the theft of more than 60 trophies.
German publications confirmed that the actual number is 64, representing almost half of the team’s total collection of 142 F1 prizes.
"The trophy case was smashed with a sledgehammer," Marko told Bild newspaper. "They were finished in two and a half minutes."
Video footage captured the entire scene, with Marko saying the robbery was carried out by ten masked men who drove a vehicle through Red Bull’s glass doors.
"We suspect that the gang will melt our trophies down," Marko told Die Welt, "judging by the way they were thrown carelessly into the car.
"The price of silver is currently very high and they can’t be sold because they are too unique," he explained.
Marko said that while the monetary value of the loss is not high, the trophies were priceless to the four-time world champions.
"If you are talking about five to ten pounds of silver per cup, it’s a few thousand euros in total. Ridiculous," he said.