Can Alpine’s latest F1 personnel shuffle turn the tide?

When Marcin Budkowski was recruited to Renault by Cyril Abiteboul in the autumn of 2017, it was not only rival teams who were unimpressed at the speed the Polish engineer was able to transition away from his previous role at the FIA.

As gamekeeper turned poacher, Budkowski’s move also came as a surprise to senior figures at Enstone, blindsided by Abiteboul’s decision to bring in someone he viewed as his own man. While competitors railed against a senior figure within the FIA being able to move seamlessly to Renault, Abiteboul insisted it was a necessary move to strength his organisation’s management, stressing that Budkowski would be joining in a “non-technical capacity”. Furthermore, it was part of a strategy to become a top team “by 2020”.

Four years on from hiring Budkowski, the goal of the recently rebranded Alpine team becoming a top outfit remains unrealised. Meanwhile, Budkowski has followed Abiteboul in exiting the French squad as it goes through yet another management refresh.

One might have thought that Esteban Ocon winning last season’s Hungarian Grand Prix would have cemented Budkowski’s future, but Alpine’s CEO Laurent Rossi clearly has other ideas. These have also included dispensing with the services of non-executive director Alain Prost, albeit after apparently making the four times world champion an offer he had to refuse. Prost’s bitter response to the leak of his departure suggested that he and Rossi are unlikely to swap Christmas cards…

PLUS: How one ambitious Frenchman is leading Alpine's new future

Meanwhile, one year after being given the top job at Alpine by Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo, Rossi is now also overseeing the F1 programme, and has brought in Otmar Szafnauer from Aston Martin as team principal.

Rossi boasts an impressive automotive industry CV. After seven years in Renault’s powertrain division, he spent close to a decade at Boston Consulting Group and Google. Returning to Renault in January 2018, he was promoted to chief of staff to the CEO in the aftermath of the Carlos Ghosn scandal, and was finally elevated to the top job at Alpine in January last year.

Rossi has orchestrated significant change at Alpine, with Szafnauer coming on board

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Rossi’s top-level spring clean at Enstone comes at a critical time for the Renault Group’s investment in F1. Last year Alpine sold its 10,000th A110 model, launched an updated version and revealed that within three years it will launch a trio of EVs – a replacement for the A110, a sporty SUV and an Alpine version of the upcoming Renault 5 hatchback.

With F1 set to use hybrid engines for the balance of this decade, albeit with an increased electrical energy recovery and storage system, Alpine’s all-electric strategy risks making a continued involvement unsustainable unless on-track success benefits the company globally

Rossi has a major road car programme to deliver if Alpine is to achieve de Meo’s vision for the brand. F1 must pay its way and fifth place in the constructors’ championship is unlikely to satisfy those requirements. Alpine needs more than the odd win to justify its future in grand prix motor racing, particularly if there are easier pickings to be had in sportscars or rallying.

With F1 set to use hybrid engines for the balance of this decade, albeit with an increased electrical energy recovery and storage system, Alpine’s all-electric strategy risks making a continued involvement unsustainable unless on-track success benefits the company globally. If Rossi is genuinely aiming for Alpine to consistently compete against Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and a resurgent McLaren, there is a lot of work to be done in a short time.

F1 has been unkind to automotive executives who crave quick success, so all eyes will be on how Rossi’s restructuring of his team manifests itself in a year when the technical rules hit the reset button.

Rossi needs a big turnaround this year to satisfy targets

Photo by: Carl Bingham / Motorsport Images