Departing AlphaTauri team principal Franz Tost has revealed that his dream Formula 1 partnership would be Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel, two drivers he knows very well.
Having been the Faenza-based side’s boss since they entered F1 in 2006, Tost oversaw Vettel’s stint with the team from mid-2007 to the end of 2008, before he was promoted to Red Bull.
Prior to switching to Red Bull, Vettel claimed his maiden F1 victory at the side’s home race in Monza, a day which is likely one of the best of Tost’s career.
Verstappen followed a similar path to Vettel, as he raced for Red Bull’s sister team in 2015 and in the opening rounds of 2016, before moving to the Milton Keynes-based team at the Spanish Grand Prix.
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Whilst Verstappen never claimed a podium for the sister team, his aggression and driving style received significant praise, given that he was just a teenager.
There’s no doubting that both drivers are amongst the best in the history of the sport, as they have seven titles between them.
Just like Vettel did, Verstappen has gone from strength-to-strength at Red Bull and is now just one title away from matching the German’s four consecutive crowns from 2010-2013.
It’s not just because of their ability to win which is why they’d form Tost’s fantasy pairing, it’s also because they are “very passionate”.
“Vettel and Max – because of their dedication to the sport and their speed,” Tost revealed, as reported by Crash.net.
“They know how to win races and they also bring all the factors with them, what you need to win races.
“This is, first of all, the talent. You must be highly skilled for driving such a car.
“Second, the passion. Both of them are very passionate.
“Look at Max, he is driving this e-car series and all this kind of stuff. Isn’t this fantastic?
“A three-time Formula 1 World Champion and at home he is racing against others on the computer.
“Then they are disciplined. They know exactly when and what they have to do. The discipline is a very, very important factor.
“And then to study the rivals, to find out where are the deficiencies and to work on this to beat them. These are the factors both of these drivers have, 100%.”
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Interestingly, Tost thinks if Verstappen and Vettel were to be team-mates, it’d be the Dutchman who’d win the qualifying head-to-head.
However, the retiring team principal thinks Vettel would have the edge in race wins.
“Could be Sebastian,” Tost said, when asked who’d win more races.