Toro Rosso fears F1 divide without budget cap

Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost believes that Formula One will only increase the gap between top teams and the rest of the grid if a budget cap is not implemented in the near future.

Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull are all in a separate division compared to the rest of the field currently in Formula One, often able to start at the back of the field and finish in the top five with ease.

Tost believes that a budget cap can be implemented and should be sorted as soon as possible due to the divide likely growing in the future between the midfield pack and the teams at the top.

"When the teams were private teams we didn't need it, because private teams never spend so much money," said Tost explained to Motorsport.com.

"The reason why the costs in Formula 1 increased so dramatically, it's because of the manufacturers.

"The FIA and FOM must find the way to come down with the costs, because otherwise we have a two class society in Formula 1: the manufacturer teams and the rest. This is what happens now.

"There are three top teams, and the rest are in another league. Because if you look to the results, the cars behind the three top teams are 20-30-40 seconds behind, and the commercial rights holder must find the way that we have interesting races.

"Fortunately this year and also last year (Sebastian) Vettel is fighting against (Lewis) Hamilton for the championship because otherwise people would not watch any more Formula One, because it is boring," he added.

"And there we must be aware about this and what we have to achieve is that minimum three or four drivers and five or six teams are fighting for the championship, and the championship is decided in the last race and not a couple of races before."

Tost also described the view that a budget cap would not work, due to the bigger teams' ability to always outspend the opposition, as nonsense, adding that the FIA could implement the rule if they so wished.

"I think it is doable. There were always arguments that you cannot control it, which is nonsense. You can control everything.

"The FIA, and FOM, whoever, just have to start from the very beginning onwards about how to control it.

"If I would decide, I would send to every team a person to control all the financial statements every week or every month. That's it.

"Like now, for example, on the technical side you can control everything, yeah? We are even not allowed to test without passing crash tests and all this kind of stuff.

"So why shouldn't you be able to control (budgets)? This is nonsense, you can control everything if you want."