General
Tost: 'Racing Point shows it's better to buy complete cars'
- GPblog.com
There is currently a lot to do about the Racing Point car of 2020, which would look too much like the Mercedes of 2019. Because of this, Renault has protested, but a verdict has yet to come. It is clear that Racing Point got a lot of inspiration from the supplier of their engine. A logical step, because that puts you in a competitive position, but not everyone agrees. Witness the protest of Renault.
Buy complete cars
At Servus TV, AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost discusses recent developments and argues that Racing Point may have made the right choice. "A team like Racing Point is currently showing that it might be better to buy complete cars." That saves a lot of time, effort, money and energy compared to - potentially - developing good material in the factory.
Although a bit short, it is an interesting alternative to building your own car. Tost does add: "This is not for purists who want to see development", which is true, because this means you won't really be able to see innovation at Racing Point this year. This while Formula 1 is actually an innovative platform by nature.
"It is no longer appropriate for every team to have its own research and development department", Tost concludes. As already pointed out, it makes little sense to invest time, effort and money in this if you know in advance that you can't reach the top. That's why buying cars is more interesting at the moment.
No free pit stop
In addition to this discussion, Tost hopes that the new regulations will bring about change in 2022. "You don't stand a chance against Mercedes, Ferrari or even Red Bull Racing. These teams have such a good structure that you almost always stand behind. I hope that the new regulations will tighten things up from 2022."
According to Tost, Lewis Hamilton's extra stop last Sunday is the example of how not to do it. "Formula 1 is entertainment, people want to see duels. People don't want that Hamilton can afford an extra pit stop just before the end because he is already so far ahead."