While the champagne flowed freely for Alpine F1 after the Brazilian Grand Prix, we learned that some 300 people were fired by Flavio Briatore at the Enstone factory…
Flavio Briatore, emblematic figure of F1 and former director of the Benetton and Renault teams, was recalled by Alpine to breathe new life into the team.
Since his return, the Italian has focused on preparing for the 2025 F1 season, reducing changes to the 2024 car so as not to disrupt this long-term project. Briatore therefore preferred to maintain a certain technical stability this year so as not to compromise the ambitious objectives of the following year.
Indeed, Alpine has chosen to minimize changes in 2024, a choice that will pay off according to Briatore: “This year, many teams lost ground with their updates. Our engineers were able to avoid this mistake.”
Radical restructuring at Enstone
Under Briatore's leadership, the Enstone factory underwent a major transformation. Briatore carried out a drastic reduction in the workforce, going from 1,150 to 850 employees. The objective of this restructuring is clear: to refocus the team's efforts on racing performance and not on secondary operations.
“This year we cleaned up more and we are still doing it. We need to get people back to working for a racing team and not for a company” he declared.
“We have returned to what Renault was before. Those who remain take care exclusively of the team and F1. Everyone else has left. When I arrived there were 1,150 people, now there are 850. “
This reorganization is also accompanied by a new vision, supported by Renault CEO Luca de Meo. The latter made the decision to end Renault's F1 engine program as an independent manufacturer. Alpine is now expected to operate more autonomously, with offices based solely in Britain, independent of Renault.
A strategic future for Alpine
With a project focused on 2025 and reduced workforce, Alpine hopes to regain sustainable competitiveness in F1. Briatore seems confident in the team's strategic choices, banking on a simplified structure and an increased focus on the essentials.
It remains to be seen whether these decisions will allow Alpine to win against the big teams in the years to come.
