When the situation worsens the 'vultures' arrive, it has happened in the past and it still happens. The first four races of the 2024 season have confirmed an Alpine in great difficulty, the team shares the last position in the Constructors' standings with Sauber and Williams, but today appears as the least competitive team on the track. To make everything worse, there is the awareness of not being a 'customer' team, but an official team with a giant in the automotive sector behind it.
In February 2023, on the occasion of the presentation of the new single-seater, the team leaders indicated ambitious objectives. After finishing fourth in the 2022 Constructors' championship, the new target was to frequent the podium as much as possible to get closer to the top-3, at that time made up of Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes.
Pierre Gasly, Alpine A524
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
Fourteen months later the scenario is very different. The departures of the CEO, Laurent Rossi, of the team principal Otmar Szafnauer and of two historical figures of the team, the sporting director Alan Permane and the technical director Pat Fry, did not involve any step forward but an unstoppable descent towards the bottom of the ranking.
The situation is very complex, and it is not surprising that in this scenario there are companies interested in taking over ownership of the team. It's a market law: buy when the company value is at its lowest.
Renault regained ownership of the Enstone structure in 2015, then using the Alpine brand starting from 2021, a choice aimed at restoring visibility to the historic sports brand of the French group. Although Formula 1 today represents a good investment for all those who own teams, the vision changes when the team owner is a car manufacturer.
It's not nice to see your name in last position, even behind private teams, visibility in this case risks becoming a boomerang. He can stay there for a short period, but without the prospect of a quick recovery he becomes a source of embarrassment.
Alpine A524: the rear with the Renault power unit
Photo by: Uncredited
If the Paris headquarters decide to sell the Enstone structure, they will have more than one potential buyer at the negotiating table. The thorniest problem, however, will be the Viry-Châtillon headquarters, where the power units are designed and built.
According to information gathered in the Suzuka paddock, one of the sales conditions of the team would be the restriction of using the power unit for a certain number of seasons (the rumors report until the end of 2029), thus ensuring a future for the group of engine engineers who are already I'm working on the new project which will debut in 2026.
However, the constraint could reduce the number of potential buyers, since some projects involve the use of their own power units or of other manufacturers with which there are already links.
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