Red Bull’s Sister Formula 1 team, Toro Rosso, have suffered a plethora of issues so far this season.
Red Bull’s Sister Formula 1 team, Toro Rosso, have suffered a plethora of issues so far this season. The latest of which, involved Daniil Kvyat’s car bursting into flames towards the end of Sunday’s German Grand Prix, making it his fourth retirement of the season.
An angry Kvyat emerged from the flaming car this weekend, to remove his gloves and lash out at the wall, clearly frustrated by the continuous disappointment the team are facing this year.
Although his team mate Jean-Eric Vergne managed to avoid his sixth DNF of the year, he finished in 13th place at Hockenheim after a stop-go penalty, and missed out on points for the 7th time in 2014. Currently more than halfway through the season, it’s not shaping up to be a good one for a team that are frequently struggling to finish in the points, or even finish at all.
Continuous Problems
Retirements are no stranger to the team as past seasons have seen struggles early on. But this year the problems came as early as Malaysia, where Vergne retired with engine related issues, but the bad luck lingered for several races, where the STR9 struggled to finish races and when it did the driver was out of the points.
However tragedy hit hardest at Monaco, one of the most iconic tracks that drivers are eager to experience every year. Both Toro Rosso cars retired from the legendary track after suffering exhaust failures, this also signalled the start of problems for Kvyat, who’d seemed to avoid the bad luck his team mate was experiencing.
The team had a double retirement again in Austria, disappointing at the home of Red Bull. A suspension problem for Kvyat and break issues for Vergne saw the two talents once again draw the short straw and watch the rest of the race from the paddock. In the past five races, Kvyat has finished only one, a disappointing situation for a driver that looked so promising at the beginning of the season.
Obstructing Talent
It’s clear that Toro Rosso have never been one of the most dominant teams in Formula 1, regularly coming a respectable 8th or 9th in the Constructors Championship with drivers not always scoring points in various races. However this year, young rookie Daniil Kvyat is proving himself to be a fierce competitor among the more experienced drivers.
In the grand scheme of things the young Russian is far from a race win in the STR9, but despite this managed to break Sebastian Vettel’s Record and became the youngest Formula 1 driver to ever score points in a race.
Not only this, but Kvyat broke the record in his first ever F1 race, proving that he had masses of skill to showcase right from the beginning. Lined up with the calm but consistent Vergne and the fiery Kvyat, the team were set this year to be successful, but with the car’s continuous issues both drivers are struggling to perform to their full potential.
Where Do They Go From Here?
As the summer break approaches, supporters of the team can only hope that the team will come back much stronger and perform to a higher standard. With the team’s drivers showing concerns regarding the safety and performance of the car, it’s time Toro Rosso address the problems presented to them.
“The final stint was looking good in terms of pace, but I suddenly lost drive and I then saw smoke and later flames in the mirrors,” Kvyat said, when discussing the shocking retirement of Sunday’s German Grand Prix.
“It’s not a nice situation to be in, but I’m now more concerned about the car than anything else. I hope everything will be ok and I will now switch my focus to the next races, where I hope we can do better.”
Will the team’s problems continue to hold them back? Or will they come back after the Summer break ready to fight? Have your say in the comments section below.
