Tost: 'Said to him jokingly then that he should come back'

AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost is stepping down from the team after 2023. Ferrari technical director Laurent Mekies will take over from him next year. According to current team boss Tost, Mekies was not the only candidate for the spot at the helm at AlphaTauri.

Mekies will not take on the role completely alone. There will be some sort of division of responsibility between Mekies and Peter Bayer, but Mekies will be given the title of team boss. Tost himself had little to do with the process of choosing his successor, but does know that there were several candidates for his spot.

Mekies was not only candidate

Motorsport-total.com quotes the Austrian: "There were also other names." As to who they were, the team boss would not or could not say. Tost says only: "There were confidential talks." It was sporting consultant Dr Helmut Marko and Red Bull Racing sporting director Oliver Mintzlaff who made the choice. Tost sounds very happy with their choice.

With both Bayer and Mekies, he is delighted. Tost has known both for a long time, and it so happens that when Mekies, who had previously worked at Toro Rosso, left, Tost jokingly said he should come back: "I remember saying to him at the time: 'Laurent, you have to go to another team now to learn something new - and then you will come back'."