ENSTONE.- Alpine On Wednesday, he appointed Oliver Oakes, 36, as its director, with the task of getting the team “back to competitiveness” in the Formula 1.
The team announced that Briton Oakes will be the second youngest team principal in F1 history. He will bring experience as founder of Hitech Grand Prix, a team that has cars in Formula 2 and Formula 3.
Alpine is third from bottom in the constructors’ championship heading into F1’s summer break and announced last week that it was cutting ties with team principal Bruno Famin.
The Renault-owned team is far from the ambitions it announced in 2021, having outlined a “100-Race Plan” to consistently challenge for podium finishes by the end of 2024. Two key technical staff left after just one race of the 2024 campaign, when it became clear the car would not be competitive.
The Monaco Grand Prix was a nightmare. Drivers Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon crashed into each other.
The change has included the return of Flavio Briatore, 74, who ran the team under its previous names of Bennetton and Renault in the 1990s and 2000s. He now acts as an adviser.
Briatore’s previous tenure included titles for Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso. However, the boss left F1 after it was found that he had ordered Nelson Piquet Jr. to deliberately crash his car to help Alonso win the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.
Words from the new director
“I am extremely grateful to (Renault Group CEO) Luca de Meo and Flavio Briatore for this opportunity to lead the BWT Alpine F1 Team back to competitiveness,” Oakes said in a statement from the team.
“The team has talented people and excellent resources at its core. I am confident that we can achieve a great deal together for the remainder of this season and in the long term. I am looking forward to getting started after the summer break.”
Oakes will take over a team that has not yet named a driver to partner Gasly in 2025, when Ocon will leave for Haas. It is also considering the possibility of withdrawing its Renault engines from 2026 in favour of an external supplier.
Source: AP
