Scuderia Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost has said that the upcoming season will be a trying one for the team. In an interview with autosport.com, he pointed to the discrepancy in resources between the Faenza-based team and its bigger and more illustrious rivals, and suggested that all the smaller teams would suffer in the new era of cost cuts.
With this major overhaul of the technical regulations, the bigger teams will be able to reach much quicker than us because we simply do not have the resources,” Tost said.
“If there is a problem with any of the new elements, the bigger teams can cope better than us. Small teams have a much easier time when there are no major changes and you have a technical status quo.
The Italian team enjoyed its most successful ever season in 2008, finishing sixth in the constructors championship and winning the Italian Grand Prix at Monza. The departures of the winning driver Sebastian Vettel and the inspirational team owner Gerhard Berger are expected to have an effect on the team, but Tost claims the regulation changes will hit them hardest.
“History has shown that whenever there is a major change in the sport, the big teams react quickest, leaving the smaller ones to catch up. It is hard to say whether we can maintain or improve on what we achieved last year.”
Toro Rosso have yet to confirm their second driver. Sebastian Bourdais and Takuma Sato are in the running, but the former has been linked to a move to Honda, in the event that a buyer for the team is found.
