Flavio Briatore has transformed Alpine – for better or worse – since he returned to Formula 1 last year. The team looks very different compared to 12 months ago.
First and foremost, Alpine have a new driver line-up, with Jack Doohan replacing Esteban Ocon. Briatore negotiated an early exit with Ocon, allowing Doohan to make his debut at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
The Italian has also revamped the reserve department. Paul Aron, Ryo Hirakawa and, most notably, Franco Colapinto have arrived to support and indeed pressurise the full-time options.
Elsewhere, Briatore and Renault CEO Luca de Meo have appointed a new team principal in Oliver Oakes. The arrival of Oakes, who runs the operation day-to-day, has seemingly ended a tumultuous period of hiring and firing at Enstone.
From next year, Alpine will surrender their works status and instead become a Mercedes customer. That makes 2025 a symbolically significant season.
In summary, Briatore has shown he’s willing to make unpopular decisions. If they pay off, he’ll look like a mastermind, but if they backfire, Alpine may once again have to press the reset button.
Flavio Briatore has promised that Alpine will do all they can for Franco Colapinto
Briatore spoke to Argentine channel Telenoche as Alpine held an exclusive ‘launch’, of sorts, on Tuesday. They joined their fellow teams in London for the F1 75 curtain-raiser.
The 74-year-old was told that he was popular in Argentina, and he responded with a ‘promise’ to Colapinto’s fans. While he wouldn’t confirm that the youngster will get a race seat this year, he hinted at the possibility.
Briatore wants to ensure Colapinto has the ‘right car to do the job’. A team boss wouldn’t ordinarily say that about a reserve driver.
It’s speculated that Doohan has only signed a six-race contract at Alpine. That could pave the way for a swap in the spring if he doesn’t perform.
“I promise we will try our best to put Franco in the position to do the job,” Briatore said. “This is what we need to do.
“We’re making all the effort with the engineers to make sure he has the right car to do the job. After that, we’ll see.”
Franco Colapinto directly asked about rumours he’ll replace Jack Doohan at Miami Grand Prix
Briatore sees similarities between Colapinto and Fernando Alonso, having overseen the Renault team when the Spaniard won back-to-back titles in 2005 and ’06. He continues to manage the Aston Martin driver.
According to the Argentine press, Briatore reviewed the data of Colapinto and Doohan at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with his engineers. He would have been concerned to see the former quicker in inferior machinery.
The remarkable story puts every team member in a difficult position when holding a microphone. But above all, it’s an awkward one for Colapinto and Doohan to handle.
Colapinto played down rumours he’d replace Doohan at the Miami Grand Prix, round six of the 2025 season. But he did use the phrase ‘I’m not a driver yet’ – perhaps a telling slip of the tongue.
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