Flavio Briatore has returned to Formula 1 with Alpine. Renault CEO Luca de Meo has hired the controversial Italian in the capacity of executive advisor.
Briatore initially received a lifetime ban from F1 for his involvement in the ‘Crashgate’ scandal at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. But that punishment was overturned, and he’s now back in the paddock as an Alpine employee, much to the dismay of Damon Hill.
The 74-year-old has helped to steer Benetton and Renault (Alpine’s predecessors) to championships earlier in his career. While that isn’t a feasible objective at Enstone right now, his immediate concern will be re-establishing the 76-race team as a competitive midfield outfit.
Indeed, while Alpine have shown signs of an improvement recently, they’ve still only scored eight points across the first 10 races of the season. That puts them 52 behind Aston Martin – who offer something of a benchmark as a comparable outfit.
Briatore may also be involved in the team’s driver search. They need to find a replacement for Esteban Ocon after they agreed to part ways with the Frenchman at the end of the season.
Up to this point, reserve driver Jack Doohan has been the favourite for that vacancy. Mick Schumacher has been an outside contender too, aided by Briatore’s close relationship with his family.
Flavio Briatore prepares talks with Carlos Sainz Sr over Alpine seat
According to Formu1a.uno, Briatore has set his sights on Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard is arguably the standout free agent on the market this year as he prepares to leave Ferrari, who have signed Lewis Hamilton.
Sainz has won three Grands Prix, most recently in Australia in March, and finished on the podium 22 times. While Briatore has yet to approach him directly, he has initiated contact with his father Carlos Sainz Sr, who plays a role in managing his son’s career.
The report states that they were ‘spotted exchanging phone numbers’ in the Spanish Grand Prix paddock. This will allow the Alpine advisor to hold talks with the Sainz camp over the coming days and weeks.
The 29-year-old was on the verge of signing his Williams contract, but has now hesitated. He may want to take a ‘risk’ given the lack of ‘established front-runners’ pursuing his signature, so a move to Alpine can’t be ‘discounted’.
Luca de Meo takes ‘bonkers’ action to turn Alpine around
Briatore must paint Alpine as an attractive proposition, which will be difficult given the events of the past year or so. Alongside the team’s off-track struggles, there has been a sustained exodus of key personnel since last summer.
But back-to-back double-points finishes will improve the team’s image in the driver market. They finally seem to be extracting some real performance from their A524.
What’s more, De Meo is considering an external energy supply deal – a step that seems ‘bonkers’. This would mean the Renault brand sacrificing their works team status to become a customer.
But equally, it could improve their prospects for the 2026 regulation changes. There are rumours that the Mercedes engine could be the class of the field, and Sainz may be more inclined to join Alpine if they have the German manufacturer’s power unit in the back.
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