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Adam Cooper
RACER Magazine http://www.racer.com/speedtv
RACER Magazine http://www.racer.com/speedtv
07/21/2007 - 07:00 PM
Eifel, Germany
Having to fight for scraps at the back of the field was hardly the most promising of positions in which to launch Scott Speed's F1 hopes. (LAT photo) ยป More Photos
Scott Speed was reportedly involved in a physical altercation with Scuderia Toro Rosso boss Franz Tost after the European GP, we can reveal. The incident must cast doubts over his short-term future with the team.
Speed was one of several drivers to spin off at the start of the third lap when confronted by a wall of water at the first corner. He was soon joined in the gravel by teammate Tonio Liuzzi, who came out of the pits after stopping for extreme wet tires and suffered an apparent technical failure that was probably related to a nudge from behind on the first lap. He narrowly missed the safety car, and struck a recovery vehicle.
Having lost both cars in the first five minutes, tensions were apparently running high when Speed returned to the team garage from the scene of the accident. After an initial discussion with Tost, Speed had reportedly turned to walk away when Tost apparently made a grab for him, in what one witness described as an "assault."
It has become increasingly apparent in recent weeks that Liuzzi and in particular Speed have fallen out of favor with Tost and team co-owner Gerhard Berger, and Sebastien Bourdais is being prepared for a future with the team. After this latest development, it would seem that the relationship between Speed and the management may preclude the American from driving the car again.
"It's been that way for the last two years, and it's a lot more now. At some point I said I don't care -- if I'm not in F1 next year, if I'm with a different team, it's OK for me. It's actually made me lot more relaxed and a lot more calm, and I think I'm producing better results, actually.
"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to read the press and know that Franz and Gerhard are pushing like hell to get rid of me and Tonio."
After the race, the team showed scant regard for the needs of the international media when it issued a fatuous press release which, rather than containing the usual useful information and quotes from personnel, carried the message, "Nothing to say." Thus the media at large was not informed that Liuzzi had experienced a technical problem prior to his accident.
VIEW EUROPEAN GP GALLERY HERE
