Current AlphaTauri (formerly Toro Rosso)

Toro Rosso

FIA Entry: Scuderia Toro Rosso
Car 18: Sebastien Buemi
Car 19: Jamie Alguersuari
Engine: Ferrari V8
Team Principa:l Franz Tost
Technical Director: Giorgi Ascanelli
Race Engineer Car 18: Riccardo Adami
Race Engineer Car 19:Andrea Landi

Stats as of end 2010

First Entered 2006
Races Entered 90
Race Wins 1
Pole Positions 1
Fastest Laps 0
Driver World Championships 0
Constructor World Championships 0

The Beginning

Toro Rosso took over the Minardi entry in F1 in 2006. Minardi took part in 345 Grands Prix between 1985 and 2005 without a single win, podium, pole or fastest lap but were the starting point for double World Champion Fernando Alonso and race winners Mark Webber and Jarno Trulli.

Red Bull Takeover

At the end of 2005 current Minardi team owner Paul Stoddart sold the team to Red Bull to allow them to create a “Junior” team to bring new driver talent into F1. The Red Bull take over resulted in a change of name to Squadra Toro Rosso and then Scuderia Toro Rosso amidst much complaint from Minardi fans. For their first season in 2006 drivers Vitantonio Liuzzi and Scott Speed used the STR1 chassis, which was essentially the Red Bull RB1 car. These were fitted with rev and air flow limited 3.0 litre Ford engines to allow Toro Rosso to compete in the new 2.4 litre formula in place for 2006.

Liuzzi scored a point for the team at the US Grand Prix, a race where only 9 cars finished. The development of the new engines by the other teams put Toro Rosso in a very uncompetitive position and they tended to qualify toward the back of the grid and run in those positions in the race.

Ferrari Customer

With the senior Red Bull team moving to Renault power for 2007 Toro Rosso picked up their Ferrari engine contract. Speed and Liuzzi continued as drivers. The STR2 proved unreliable and both drivers made mistakes during the year leading to speculation that they would be replaced. Speed eventually lost his seat to BMW test driver, and Red Bull junior driver, Sebastien Vettel. In changeable weather at the Chinese Grand Prix Vettel bought his car home 4th with Liuzzi 6th.

For 2008 Vettel was joined by reigning Champ Car Series winner Sebastien Bourdais as Liuzzi moved to Force India. Bourdais finished 7th at the opening race of the season in Australia and Vettel then took 4th in Monaco. As the season progressed Vettel in particular was a regular points scorer and in wet qualifying at the Italian Grand Prix put his car on pole. The rain continued into race day and Vettel went on to win the race becoming the youngest ever Grand Prix victor. More points finishes for Vettel in the final races of the season put Toro Rosso 6th in the Constructors Championship and earned him a place in the Red Bull senior team for 2009.

Sebastien Buemi joined Bourdais for 2009 and after the highs of 2008 the team came back down to earth in ’09. Bourdais was dismissed mid season due to poor race results and Jaime Alguersuari took his seat for the remainder of the season. The drivers managed a few low points finished but the team dropped to 10th in the Constructors Championship.

Buemi and Alguersuari continued for 2010 and again picked up some minor points placing’s, helped by the revised points scoring system for the season. The team finished 9th in the Constructors Championship but were the lowest placed of the established F1 teams.

2011

Toro Rosso continue with the same driver line up in 2011 and, with the STR6 car and Ferrari engines, hope they can move further up the grid.

 

[teabagyokel]

Red Bull can afford to compare every driver with Vettel - the whole point of the Toro Rosso team is to find them a driver better than they already have - which is Vettel

Toro Rosso are there to find future Red Bull drivers. To drive for Red Bull you don't have to be better than Vettel. You have to be better than Webber.

 

[Il_leone]

Toro Rosso are there to find future Red Bull drivers. To drive for Red Bull you don't have to be better than Vettel. You have to be better than Webber.

--------------------------------

So the Dark Lord Helmut Marko has finally spoke out about Buemi and Algarsuari

Lets be honest no way can anyone expect to win in a STR.

The reason why they were so good in 2008 was because they started the season with the old car which included 4 accidents in the first 4 races for a double world champion named Vettel

When STR got the new car Vettel suddenly flew from Monaco onwards towards the end of the season where the team made the back end of q3 and scored points

It is obviously forgotten that

A) Pretty much Honda, Toyota, Red Bull , WIlliams , BMW all gave up on 2008 mid season and started thinking about 2009 and all of these teams would have been expected to beat STR

B) The car was bolted with a Red Bull chassis designed by Newey and a Ferrari engine which was as powerful as the works Ferrari so it was hardly a backmarker car

Now STR have to design their own chassis

C) It appears Red Bull racing have taken more of the funding from Red Bull corporation and STR's has been reduced

So in all honesty apart from the wet weather situation how does Helmut expect a small team on the same size as Sauber expect to win races and fight for podiums regularly

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Yes Vergne and Riccardo are basically fighting for a shootout to land a Red Bull drive alongside Vettel....Webber would prefer that his countryman get it if Red Bull want to promote one of them

The only thing to mess this up would be if Lewis Hamilton who will the one that determines the driver market fancies being in the same team as Vettel

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For STR next season their aim should be to beat Force India who have a similar situation but might have more resources from Sahara group

 

[RasputinLives]

Toro Rosso are there to find future Red Bull drivers. To drive for Red Bull you don't have to be better than Vettel. You have to be better than Webber.

No to be a Red Bull driver you either have to be better than Vettel or prove you can tow the line better than Mark Webber.

 

[teabagyokel]

No to be a Red Bull driver you either have to be better than Vettel or prove you can tow the line better than Mark Webber.

Anyone can tow the line better than Mark Webber!

 

[RasputinLives]

Yeah I guess he did spend the whole of 2011 annoying Red Bull by bothering their number 1 driver and he certainly wouldn't obey any order to not overtake Vettel if given.......oh wait....hang on!

 

[Slyboogy]

So Webber spent the whole of 2011 annoying Red Bull and Vettel?

He annoyed the fans and me rather than his own team-mate.

 

[RasputinLives]

So Webber spent the whole of 2011 annoying Red Bull and Vettel?

He annoyed the fans and me rather than his own team-mate.

Sorry Sly - I guess there should be a sarcasm font as I was responding to the fact that Webber doesn't tow the team party line when he spent all last year doing so

 

[Slyboogy]

Sorry Sly - I guess there should be a sarcasm font as I was responding to the fact that Webber doesn't tow the team party line when he spent all last year doing so

I get it now, your second point about him not disobeying team orders was a contrast to he point before, confusing...well to me, who is easily confused.

Sorry.

 

[teabagyokel]

Raspy, there is a major difference between towing the party line and being utterly unable to compete with your team-mate.

He kept pushing Vettel at Silverstone, for example, when the team ordered him not to. The only person who obeyed any team order at Red Bull last year was Vettel at Interlagos.

Webber only finished in the top 2 three times in 2011. That is half as often as Alonso!

 

[RasputinLives]

I agree he was awful but I honestly believe part of that was because the team had beat him into submission about playing by their rules. They were obviously pleased with the way he'd been all season as they gave him a little present in the last race of the season.

I, like everyone else, can't believe he's kept his drive but he obviously did something to please Red Bull huh? Personally I hope they shove Vergne in the car in 2013 and he gives old Seb the shock of his life.

 

[Slyboogy]

I believe as its been stated that he signed a new contract around Monaco where he reportedly "as he had his best start to a season ever". But he's failed to deliver, why he's been kept on is beyond me, but then the same could be said for Massa. Both teams obviously don't have or don't want replacements just for one year as its rather pointless and thought might aswell keep them.

 

[Il_leone]

I believe as its been stated that he signed a new contract around Monaco where he reportedly "as he had his best start to a season ever". But he's failed to deliver, why he's been kept on is beyond me, but then the same could be said for Massa. Both teams obviously don't have or don't want replacements just for one year as its rather pointless and thought might aswell keep them.

Webber has one trump card at Red Bull which annoys the heck out of Helmut...he does not deal with Christian Horner or Helmut but Dieter Matersich himself over contract agreement and you can bet Flavio Briatore is involved somewhere down the line to negotiate as his manager

Silverstone was unnecessary given the previous season Horner was saying the team is one of equal opportunities and the row of the front wing the previous year should have been a lesson to him because he was useless at managing the situation except getting Mark angry

Next race Vettel was actually rubbish because the media accused him of Red Bull favouritism and he was making so many mistakes where in previous years he would been buried in a gravel trap except rejoining from escape roads. So all Red Bull did or Horner was make Mark mad and Seb nervous

As for Interlagos I take a different view Seb was not going to yield and the way he did it by saying I am faster than Mark even with a broken gearbox was a statement to the team

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As for as Toro Rosso are concerned - two young chargers normally means some feisty internal battles possibly

both are British F3 champions I believe as was Algarsuari. It will be interesting to see if they do better than Buemi and ALgarsuari

 

[Viscount]

Well despite a less than stellar season, with his 10 podiums this season Webber has helped Red Bull win another Constructor’s Championship. Red Bull would realistically only replace him with a world champion or more likely a Red Bull Junior Driver. They have mountains of data to compare him to Buemi and Alguersuari so if either of them were good enough they’d be in that seat, so Webber is still the best option and Red Bull have two new driver’s to compare him to. Plus the exhaust blown diffuser reportedly favoured Vettel’s driving style more than Webber’s so Red Bull probably expect their two drivers to be closer next season.

Vettel and Webber are currently the fourth most successful pairing in F1 history, with 11 one-two finishes to their name. Schumacher/Barrichello being first with 24, Senna/Prost second with 14 and Hakkinen/Coulthard with 13.

 

[Il_leone]

as ever Christian Horner finally speaks up saying Toro Rosso is an opportunity for drivers to showcase their talents at the highest level which they might not have without Red Bull support

Pointing to Vettel as the success but Red Bull have been doing this for 15 years and they really backed up some drivers who really had no chance of being a F1 success like Klein and Bernoldi

Red Bull actually fell out with Sauber back in 2001 when Peter Sauber decided he wanted a driver who did not even do F3 or F3000 in one of his cars over Red Bull's preferred choice of Enrique Bernoldi - his name Kimi Raikkonen

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This weeks Autosport did suggest Red Bull can afford to take someone with real talent and potential to takeover from Vettel who is expected to join Ferrari in 2014 so Riccardo and JEV have got that chance to do so or Red Bull take Hamilton seems to be the other option if Webber packs it

 

[teabagyokel]

TMP so far:

 

[Slyboogy]

Why Ricciardo, Vergne and Toro Rosso's performances need to improve.

 

[soccerman17]

Anyone can tow the line better than Mark Webber!

I hope your opinion has changed TBY

Anyways I dont think you can blame Ricciardo and Vergne. Truth is the car is crap because the team gets no budget. At this point its just try to beat my teammate and if I pick up a few points then great must have been lots of crashes/mechanicals.

 

[teabagyokel]

soccerman17 - I tend to think he says what he thinks and sometimes that equates to what the team think.

 

[tooncheese]

This slipped under the radar a bit, but both Toro drivers are being given a second year.

 

[Brogan]

Toro Rosso have apparently signed a deal with Renault for engines from 2014.