Franz bids farewell to Alpha Tauri at the end of the current campaign – By Joe Murphy
Alpha Tauri have announced that former FIA executive Peter Bayer will join the Team as Chief Executive Officer at the end of 2023, while the man currently at the helm will step down from the role of Team Principal. Laurent Mekies, currently Sporting Director at Ferrari, will replace the longstanding team servant.
A key figure in the development of both Alpha Tauri and its predecessor Toro Rosso, Franz Tost joined the Faenza squad as Team Principal over 18 years ago and led Toro Rosso to its first victory three years later the 2008 Italian Grand Prix. Following its rebranding as Scuderia AlphaTauri, Franz then led the Team to victory in 2020, winning at Monza for a second time as Pierre Gasly was victorious in a frantic race.
With the Team also charged with the development of young drivers for future F1 success, during his time with the team Franz also helped progress a generation of grand prix winners and champions. Names include world champions Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen.
Recognising his longstanding contribution to the Team and its drivers, Franz will continue to work with Scuderia AlphaTauri in a consultancy role in 2024, but will not be as present in the pit lane, going forward.
Laurent Mekies’ appointment as Team Principal at the team brings Ferrari’s current Sporting Director back to where he achieved many of his early successes, first as a race engineer before being a chief engineer also before leaving for the Red team in 2018.
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