Oliver Oakes became the latest in a revolving door of team principals at Alpine, after the team confirmed he would be leaving them with immediate effect.
Having only joined them in July last year, Oakes oversaw Alpine’s jump to sixth in the Constructors’ Championship late last season when both Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon achieved a double podium at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Oakes wanted to bring more stability to Alpine following uncertainty, particularly after parent company Renault pulled the plug on their 2026 power unit, having closed down their engine facility in Viry Chatillon.
At the same time, former team boss Flavio Briatore made his return at the Enstone outfit, where he took up the role of Executive Advisor.
In practice, he would be in charge of their restructuring and reporting directly to Renault CEO Luca De Meo. In reality, it appears he has been making day-to-day decisions that have impacted the team and forced Oakes to consider his options according to a report in The Race.
Oliver Oakes was ‘forced’ to front decisions made by Flavio Briatore
Briatore’s return was a surprise to some, given he was issued a ban from competing in all FIA-sanctioned competitions following the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix cheating scandal.
This was later lifted after Briatore appealed to the French courts and won his case, with him going on to manage Fernando Alonso and various drivers’ careers in junior formulas.
When he joined Alpine midway through 2024, he was already making key decisions. The team’s hospitality unit was replaced at the Italian Grand Prix with a new unit designed by Philippe Starck, and helped sign the engine deal with Mercedes from 2026.
As the team principal, Oakes became the ‘frontman’ for decisions made by Briatore for things that were either put in place before his arrival or were moves that ‘he outright did not agree with’, according to the report.
This included Ocon’s early exit after the Qatar Grand Prix last year, a decision that was made by Briatore to give Jack Doohan his debut. Briatore would later sign a deal to bring in Franco Colapinto after being impressed by his brief stint at Williams, leading to speculation over Doohan’s future.
- READ MORE: Who is Flavio Briatore? Everything to know about Alpine’s F1 executive adviser and team principal
Timing suggests Oliver Oakes did not agree with Flavio Briatore
All of this is amid the backdrop of speculation after the Miami Grand Prix over the future of Doohan at the team, who was previously reported to only be contracted for six races.
Speculation grew after Miami that Alpine would be making a switch to their drivers, with that later being confirmed as they announced Colapinto would be replacing Doohan “for the next five races” before a driver lineup evaluation at the British Grand Prix.
The timing of the driver change and surprise at Oakes’ exit suggests that it was Briatore who decided to replace Doohan, and that Oakes did not agree with him.
Given that Briatore is a more senior figure within Alpine, there was only one outcome. The Enstone squad now has its seventh team principal since the exit of Cyril Abiteboul in 2020.
Leave feedback about this