Alpha Tauri F1 Representative "George Russell is stronger than Lewis Hamilton"[F1-Gate.com]

AlphaTauri F1 team boss Franz Tost believes George Russell is ‘already stronger’ than Lewis Hamilton and will be Max Verstappen’s toughest opponent in the 2023 F1 season alongside Charles Leclerc says he is

George Russell finished fourth in the drivers’ standings, 35 points clear of teammate Lewis Hamilton, in a year in Mercedes F1 plagued by aerodynamic and poop problems affecting the W13 ground effect car. Blackley’s team in the top three

George Russell also delivered results in the Brazilian F1 Grand Prix, giving Mercedes its first and last win of the 2022 season.

However, while George Russell overtook Lewis Hamilton in the first half of the season, seven-times world champion Hamilton took an active role in helping the engineers unravel the intricacies and mysteries of the Mercedes Q13 team.

However, Franz Tost sees George Russell joining Leclerc as Max Verstappen’s biggest challenger.

“The kind of dominance that Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing have shown this year is quite rare,” Franz Tost told Speedweek.

“In 2023 we expect a three-way battle between Max, Charles Leclerc and George Russell, who is already stronger than Lewis Hamilton.”

Franz Tost expects Red Bull Racing’s prospects to suffer somewhat due to its top position in the F1 constructors’ championship and reduced wind tunnel testing times imposed by cost trap breaches in 2021. ing .

“Even if the team has some of the best technicians, the FIA sanction will certainly have a negative impact on Red Bull Racing,” said Franz Tost.

“But I think Red Bull Racing can fight for the world title again.”

Franz Tost will manage a new lineup at AlphaTauri F1 next year. Rookie Nick de Vries joins in place of Pierre Gasly, who is moving to the Alpine F1 team, and becomes team-mates with Yuki Tsunoda.

Yuki Tsunoda is entering his third season in F1, but Franz Tost is hoping for a strong season for the 22-year-old Japanese driver.

“Yuki Tsunoda developed quite well and was able to improve and was faster than Pierre Gasly in the final qualifying session,” said Franz Tost.

“It’s up to him how much he can improve. I already expect him to have a strong 2023.”

“At the beginning of September it became clear that Gasly was moving to Alpine,” Tost said when asked how well he thought Pierre Gasly would get along with Esteban Ocon at the Alpine F1 team.

“He has a lot of experience now, but Alpine has a strong partner in Esteban Ocon who knows the team and the car well. Let’s see how quickly he integrates there.”