Tost ignored 'experts': 'I said: but not for Max Verstappen'

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15:54, 19 Dec 2020

When Max Verstappen finished a Formula 3 weekend at the Norisring in 2014, not only Helmut Marko was immediately convinced, but also Franz Tost. The team boss of AlphaTauri (in previous seasons known as Toro Rosso) wanted Verstappen to be part of his team immediately.

"I remember it well: wet track, it was raining. As you know, a round on the Norisring is short: it doesn't take a minute. Yet Max was one or two seconds faster than the rest," Tost remembers. Soon after that there was a telephone conversation with Marko. "Helmut and I are, of course, always in contact about these matters, we discuss the operations of young drivers in detail. It was clear to me that I wanted Max in our car, as a driver and not as a test driver."

And so it happened. In 2015, Verstappen made his debut in Formula 1 together with Carlos Sainz.

"Many 'experts' said it was far too early. To which I said: but not for Max Verstappen. Because he is not a passenger in the car, as you often see with newcomers, but he drives the car. How he controlled the car, who controlled it completely... Extraordinary," Tost said to Formule 1 Magazine.

Pos.	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Antonelli Kimi Antonelli	MercedesMER	156
2	Lewis Hamilton Lewis Hamilton	FerrariFER	115
3	George Russell George Russell	MercedesMER	106
4	Charles Leclerc Charles Leclerc	FerrariFER	75
5	Lando Norris Lando Norris	McLarenMCL	73
6	Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri	McLarenMCL	70
7	Max Verstappen Max Verstappen	Red Bull RacingRBR	55
8	Isack Hadjar Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RacingRBR	37
9	Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly	AlpineALP	32
10	Liam Lawson Liam Lawson	Racing BullsRCB	28
11	Franco Colapinto Franco Colapinto	AlpineALP	19
12	Oliver Bearman Oliver Bearman	HaasHAA	18
13	Arvid Lindblad Arvid Lindblad	Racing BullsRCB	14
14	Carlos Sainz Carlos Sainz	WilliamsWIL	6
15	Alexander Albon Alexander Albon	WilliamsWIL	5
16	Esteban Ocon Esteban Ocon	HaasHAA	3
17	Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto	AudiAUD	2
18	Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso	Aston MartinAST	1
19	Nico Hulkenberg Nico Hulkenberg	AudiAUD	0
20	Valtteri Bottas Valtteri Bottas	CadillacCAD	0
21	Sergio Perez Sergio Perez	CadillacCAD	0
22	Lance Stroll Lance Stroll	Aston MartinAST	0

Tost ignored 'experts': 'I said: but not for Max Verstappen'

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