After serving AlphaTauri and Toro Rosso and launching numerous brilliant drivers for a period of 18 years, team Principal Franz Tost has finally decided to hang up his boots at the end of this season. Talking on the F1: Beyond the Grid podcast ahead of his last race in Abu Dhabi, Tost revealed how watching Max Verstappen reminded him of F1 legend Michael Schumacher.
When asked about the best drivers to have been launched into F1 under his scrutiny, Tost named Verstappen and explained that the Dutchman had caught his eye due to the raw natural speed. Tost reminisced about watching Verstappen drive a wet race at the Norisring during his Formula 3 days.
A man who achieved his dream of leading a Formula 1 team ✨
Outgoing AlphaTauri Team Principal Franz Tost speaks about how he helped launch the careers of Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen, plus more on the latest #F1BeyondTheGrid podcast! ️#F1
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 22, 2023
The lap times around the tracks were being set at 52 or 53 seconds, but Verstappen was 2 seconds faster than the rest of the field. As per Tost, it was almost like he was driving on a dry line. Tost said, “This reminded me also when Michael Schumacher won the Formula Ford race at the Salzburgring, similar conditions, and he was also every lap 2,3 seconds faster than the rest.”
Now, 9 years after making his F1 debut, Verstappen is on the trajectory to achieve Schumacher-level greatness in a few years time. He has already racked up three world championship titles at the age of 26 years, and plenty more are sure to come.
Max Verstappen and Franz Tost had their doubters
The road to F1 wasn’t that smooth for Verstappen as Tost had to face a lot of doubters. People had started asking questions, especially because Verstappen had been brought into F1 at an age which was too young as per normal standards.
Verstappen made his F1 debut with Toto Rosso back in 2015 when he was just 17 years old. The Dutchman had started racing in the pinnacle of motorsports at a time when he did not even have his driver’s license. Therefore, Tost and Red Bull had to face a lot of questions.
| 17 Year old Max Verstappen’s first ever F1 super-license displayed at the F1 Exhibition
He got this before he got his driving license
He is the youngest driver to get a F1 super-license and this is something that won’t be repeated with the current rules. pic.twitter.com/jgDb924Lkb
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) March 26, 2023
However, Tost claimed that he did not feel the need to explain his decisions and told the doubters to come back after 5 years to check if his decision had been correct or not. Tost did not even have to wait for 5 years as Verstappen claimed his first F1 victory just a year later at the 2016 Spanish GP.
Since then, nobody has dared to doubt Verstappen, and by the end of 2023, he will already be en route to GOAT status. In a few years, the Dutchman might just become the greatest product to have come out of the Red Bull junior team.
