AlphaTauri’s team principal Franz Tost has accepted that their car is “too slow” after a disappointing start to the season and questions over the future of the constructor.
AlphaTauri’s sole point-scoring finish of the season came at the Australian Grand Prix, as Yuki Tsunoda was promoted into the top ten after Carlos Sainz was hit with a five second penalty by the stewards.
Sainz was punished for causing a collision with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso after the second red flag restart, causing pain for Ferrari, as the Italian outfit left Australia with zero points.
“We must now find ways to get out of the dilemma,” Tost said.
Want to work in Formula 1? Browse the latest F1 job vacancies
“But we’re on the right track.
“This includes making better use of the Red Bull wind tunnel in England. I was in Milton Keynes last week for that,” Tost explained, showing closer collaboration with their partner.
Tost recently revealed that the team has had a shakeup after he felt that he could no longer trust his engineers to deliver, as the car hasn’t performed adequately in 2023.
“Yes. The aero department has been reorganised,” the team principal said.
“We have separated from some employees and I am now expecting an increase in performance from the new people. I don’t want to name any names just yet,” he added.
With AlphaTauri finding itself in a challenging situation, there has reportedly been talk among Red Bull’s management about potential changes at the outfit.
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has suggested that management is weighing a sale of AlphaTauri or even relocating it to England to make it closer to Red Bull’s operations.
READ: Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen interview censored after X-rated incident
“It is something we are reconsidering,” Marko told RacingNews365.
“It is logical too. The branding of AlphaTauri has been scaled back somewhat because only in a few countries where we race AlphaTauri is actually sold. It is about three to four countries only.”
“The task is simple. More money must be brought in and results improved,” he added.