Sebastian Vettel reputation is 'nonsense' says former F1 team boss

Sebastian Vettel has been defended by one of the longest-serving team principals in the history of Formula 1.

Franz Tost spent 18 years leading the Toro Rosso (later AlphaTauri) team, crossing paths with a number of future greats including Vettel and reigning champion Max Verstappen in his time at the Red Bull junior team.

In a wide-ranging interview with Sport1, Tost was informed that Vettel had developed a reputation, 'especially in England', as a driver who could only win when given the fastest car on the grid.

Not only did the Austrian defend the 37-year-old's record, pointing out that he dominated junior competition Formula BMW, winning 18 out of 20 races in 2004 and never finishing below third, before coming to Toro Rosso and winning in his first full season in F1, but he also used the comment to take a shot at championship leader Oscar Piastri.

Tost: Vettel one of the best ever

Tost's response to the question was strong, saying: “That's rubbish. Vettel won as a rookie with a Toro Rosso, dominated Formula BMW before that and also won with Ferrari. He is definitely one of the best of all time. The car was only part of it. A Piastri wouldn't be winning today if he wasn't in a McLaren.”

When that last comment was followed up, Tost was asked whether he believed Piastri could have matched Max Verstappen's brilliant win from pole in Suzuka this season if he was also driving a Red Bull.

He answered: "I can hardly imagine that. He put in a magical lap in qualifying, and in the race he controlled everything. That was the typical Max factor. I doubt anyone else could have achieved that."

Verstappen has a long history of outperforming his team-mates in equivalent machinery, with the last 18 months a prime example of that as he continues to burn through driving partners.

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