Tost reveals which F1 driver impressed him the most

Outgoing AlphaTauri Team Principal Franz Tost has revealed which driver impressed him the most during his time at the squad.

Tost has been at the helm of the Red Bull sister outfit ever since it joined the grid in 2006 but enjoyed his last race in F1 in Abu Dhabi last month ahead of his retirement.

Originally competing under the moniker of Toro Rosso, it secured its first race win at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix with Sebastian Vettel.

In 2020, the year it changed its name to AlphaTauri, Pierre Gasly triumphed at the same location to give Tost another Grand Prix victory in F1.

17 drivers have competed for Tost’s team but the Austrian picked out two that excited him the most.

“It would be unfair to say now. Of course, Max Verstappen or Sebastian Vettel,” he told media including RacingNews365.com.

“They impressed me, but I must say also the other drivers.

“When they came to us, I must say, they had a very professional approach. And they worked really close together with the team.

“What I liked is how they developed themselves, because this is also an important factor from the sporting side, but also from the human side.

“From the 17 drivers, I have none in mind where I would say ‘forget him, he is totally useless’. They all had their strengths and they were all good characters.”

Vettel, Verstappen prowess goes beyond pure speed

Vettel and Verstappen are Red Bull’s most successful protégés as they currently share seven World Championships between them.

Tost explained that the strength of the pair goes beyond their raw speed behind the wheel.

“Sebastian now and Max Verstappen, they won so many championships that everybody thinks now ‘OK, these were the best’,” Tost said.

“They were the best, no discussion about this. They were the best, from the talent, from the driving skills, especially from their passion.

“That’s very, very important. But also from their discipline. Both of them are really disciplined.

“And I remember, Sebastian, he took care about everything, the nutrition, the training, he wanted to know really everything, also about the technical side.

“That's the point, they were also quite innovative, which meant they studied other drivers, they knew exactly what was not so good last year, where they had to improve.

“They were quite honest with themselves.

“They didn't tell this to the outside, but to them, they knew exactly where they had to work. And this was quite interesting to observe.”