Ex-Alpine boss SLAMS Renault management for having lofty F1 ambitions following Otmar Szafnauer’s sacking

As part of a significant technical restructure, Alpine has bid farewell to key people, including Team Principal Otmar Szafnauer and CEO Laurent Rossi. The inability to achieve Renault’s high expectations catalyzed this overhaul. The French manufacturer had hoped for wins and podium positions, but Alpine publicly admitted their limits, intending to just retain their fourth-place performance from last season.

Former Alpine chief Marcin Budkowski emphasized that Renault’s aspirations were unmet due to limited funding. The disappointment is evident as Alpine’s lap times remain unchanged from last year. In contrast, Aston Martin, who finished seventh last season, has surged ahead and is now challenging for second place. McLaren, too, struggled initially but has gained momentum with recent upgrades, leaving Alpine far behind.

Former Alpine team principal Marcin Budkowski criticized the situation, agreeing with Alain Prost’s assertion that Renault’s involvement lacked adequate financial means to match their high ambitions. Speaking about Renault’s management, he is quoted by formu1a.uno, “The main problem with Renault’s involvement in Formula 1 was that the ambitions were always very high, and the financial means were not adequate.”

The gains of their rivals and Alpine’s current season’s progress have undoubtedly unsettled Renault’s top management, who have longed for better championship standings since the turbo hybrid era began. Alpine’s sole highlight this season has been Estban Ocon’s podium finish in Monaco and Pierre Gasly’s third-place finish in the Sprint at Spa. 

Discover: Ex-Alpine boss Otmar Szafnauer reportedly set to join F1-bound American team

Marcin Budkowski believes that Otmar Szafnauer’s departure press release was a PR tactic 

Budkowski emphasized that the top brass at Renault “simply don’t want to hear” about the discrepancy between lofty goals and available resources within Renault’s management, a topic he and Otmar Szafnauer had raised previously. Regarding the recent departures, the team portrayed them as a “mutual agreement.” However, Budkowski suggests it’s merely a PR tactic to downplay potential disagreements. 

The departure of experienced individuals like Szafnauer is probably because his “approach was probably not received positively at Renault.” He also lamented the departure of key personnel, saying, “I am sad because this is a team that deserves better, it deserves better results and it also deserves to have better management.” 

While Alpine’s decline is very upsetting, Budkowski pointed out that other teams’ progress, like Aston Martin’s and McLaren’s, shows that rapid development is possible. However, he also recognized that the process is not linear and that this progress has added pressure on Alpine. Alpine is now in a no man’s land, unable to strike at the teams ahead of them and unconcerned about the teams behind them.

In case you missed it:

• Christian Horner gives his verdict on Alpine’s sacking of Otmar Szafnauer and Alan Permane
• Max Verstappen to set up his own racing team in 2025

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