Franz Tost too ‘extreme’ as suggested F1 follow-up career ruled out

As Franz Tost prepares for talks with Red Bull to determine how their relationship continues, the retired team boss says it is for the best he does not become an F1 pundit.

Tost served as team principal of Red Bull’s second team since it joined the grid back in 2006 as Toro Rosso, though 2023 was his final season as he now passes the baton over to former Ferrari race director Laurent Mekies.

However, it has become clear that his retirement from the role does not necessarily mean retiring from F1 for good, as Tost and Red Bull are in talks over how to continue working together.

Franz Tost views too ‘extreme’ to be F1 pundit

Tost confirmed to F1-Insider.com that January 15 is when he will sit down with Red Bull for talks, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko’s suggestion that Tost will become a stand-by consultant something which Tost can see coming to pass.

However, he will not be putting his F1 expertise into a punditry role, stressing that political answers are not his thing and so his views would be too “extreme” for people to handle.

“That’s definitely not my thing,” he affirmed. “I would have to give too many political answers. That is not my strength.

“And many people couldn’t live with the truth. Ralf Schumacher, who does this very well, speaks too clearly for most people. I would be even more extreme.”

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For someone like Tost, who has been part of motorsport for much of his life, it would not come as a shock if he agreed to continue with Red Bull in some capacity and cushion the blow of his reducing involvement with Formula 1.

However, he confirmed that the decision to relinquish the AlphaTauri team principal role was not a sudden choice, it had been several years in the making.

“It didn’t come as a surprise,” he said.

“Two years ago I told Dietrich Mateschitz [late Red Bull team founder] that I no longer wanted to be standing on the pit wall at 70. He said: ‘Okay, but wait until we find a successor’. That’s what happened with Laurent Mekies and Peter Bayer [CEO]. I’m leaving AlphaTauri in good hands.”

Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda will continue at the wheel for AlphaTauri in F1 2024.

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