Ex-AlphaTauri Team Principal outlines how Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen’s disciplined approach is what set them apart as the two best drivers he worked with during his career in Formula 1.
Tost was installed at the helm of the Faenza squad upon Red Bull’s acquisition of the Minardi team in 2005, remaining in that post until he opted to retire at the end of this year.
During his time managing Red Bull’s second-string side, Tost oversaw the development of two of the sport’s future greats in multiple-time F1 champions Vettel and Verstappen.
Vettel famously took the team’s maiden win in the rain at Monza in 2008 before going on to accrue four successive Drivers’ titles and 39 race wins with Red Bull between 2010-13.
Meanwhile, Verstappen spent a year with the sister operation, known then as Toro Rosso, as the youngest driver in F1 history at 17. His exploits earned him a promotion only four races into his sophomore campaign, where he won on debut for Red Bull in Barcelona.
The Dutchman surpassed Vettel’s win tally of 53 in the final round of his third title-winning year, having taken 34 victories in 44 races following last year’s regulation change.
Having also been responsible for nurturing the careers of Carlos Sainz, Daniel Ricciardo and Pierre Gasly, Tost admits he’s been privileged to handle several good drivers.
Asked who had impressed him the most throughout his extensive F1 stint, Tost said: “It would be unfair to say now. Of course, Max Verstappen or Sebastian Vettel. 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. And 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.
“And 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.”
However, the Austrian stalwart concedes that Vettel and Verstappen remained the standouts, owing to their extreme attention to detail in their shared pursuit of success.
“Of course, Sebastian now and Max Verstappen they won so many championships that everybody thinks now OK, these were the best. They were the best, no discussion about this,” Tost added.
“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.
“And 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.”
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