Stoddart is proud of the team he owned until 2005

Australian entrepreneur Paul Stoddart took over the Minardi team from its founder, Giancarlo Minardi, in 2001 and saved it from closure. Stoddart owned the team until 2005, when he sold it to Dietrich Mateschitz, an Austrian billionaire, after which it was renamed Toro Rosso, and this year it changed its name again – now it is Visa RB.

Stoddart noted that Red Bull’s investments over the past nearly two decades and the transformations carried out significantly exceeded both his expectations and the commitments the Austrian company had ever undertaken.

“When I sold the team at the end of 2005, I put forward two conditions during the negotiations,” Stoddart told Australian publication Speedcafe. – First the team must stay in Faenza. The second was that the workforce had to be taken care of, and if the new owners wanted to fire anyone, such employees had to be paid normal compensation.

To be honest, even though we signed a contract and all, the agreements were sealed with just a handshake. Dietrich not only always fulfilled them – he exceeded all expectations, and now the team employs 700 or whatever people.

I believe the Faenza base has been completely rebuilt. At one time we occupied the main building, the old building of the Minardi base, and we also had a technology center where we produced carbon parts, where there were autoclaves, etc. It seems to me that now a lot has changed and the team has a good level has achieved. Over the years, the new owners have trained a number of talented drivers in this team, such as Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo and others.”

Over the course of its existence, the team, under whatever name it competed, managed to win two races: Sebastian Vettel opened the score in 2008 in Monza and in 2020 Pierre Gasly achieved success at the same Italian circuit.

Although Stoddart is no longer formally involved with the team, he remains in touch with a number of veterans and is proud of the role he played in saving Minardi, which made its Formula 1 debut in 1985.

“It is still competing in the championship, although many teams have already dropped out, and is still developing with confidence,” he emphasized. – Although it is still too early to draw conclusions, it seems to me that this year she will be able to fight for positions in the middle of the pack, for around 5th or 6th place in the Constructors’ Championship. They have a car that is fast enough for this. Speaking of drivers, Daniel needs to regain his self-confidence, even though he is a good driver and capable of better results than he is showing now.

I am proud of the team, even more so, but I must once again point out the merits of the person I sold it to: Mateschitz has always taken care of it, so he was destined for a good future. Unfortunately he passed away and I really miss him because he was one of the greats.”