AlphaTauri boss Franz Tost has accused other engine manufacturers of wasting time ahead of the crucial vote regarding the engine freeze. When Honda announced they would be leaving the sport at the end of the 2021 Formula 1 season, attention turned to where that left Red Bull and AlphaTauri. It was soon revealed that Red Bull’s intention was to continue running the Japanese power units on the condition that F1 teams agreed to an engine freeze that would see development halted until 2025. This would enable the Milton Keynes-based outfit to obtain the necessary know-how and resources to eventually develop the engine themselves. However, progress has been slow - as is usually the case in F1 - and Tost has become frustrated with what he believes have been attempts to stall by other teams. "This is the usual game of the manufacturers who are in front," Tost told Motorsport-Magazin.com. "Even though they keep saying they agree, basically then don’t agree and just want to take time." The original vote was scheduled for the end of January but was pushed back to February, with Helmut Marko saying that some teams had changed their minds after initially agreeing. And Marko has already communicated that the outcome in his eyes is "all or nothing", meaning Red Bull are prepared to walk away from the sport in the event of an unfavourable judgement. However, even if they fail to reach the 27 votes required, under the current regulations, Renault would be forced to supply power units to the two teams should they wish to remain in F1. But that is something Tost is not in favour of either. "Without a power unit, it’s hard," Tost continued. "Renault has a factory team. I find it hard to imagine that we will get a power unit with which you can successfully race. "You have to assume that Red Bull and [Dietrich] Mateschitz have different claims. They want to go to the World Cup. They need the right power unit material."
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