New Renault CEO makes firm Alpine F1 statement

Renault Group’s new chief executive, Francois Provost, has moved to reaffirm the French car maker’s commitment to Formula 1.

His comments come against continued speculation that the team is for sale despite repeated assurances that is not the case.

New Renault boss reaffirms F1 commitment

The Alpine F1 team is Renault’s factory effort in the world championship, branded after its boutique sports car marque since 2021.

Prior to that, the squad competed in Renault’s image, before former CEO Luca de Meo elected to use the F1 team as a key marketing element for its sub-brand.

According to Provost, that remains the case despite the change in leadership at the very top of the group.

“Formula 1 is part of our core strategy for Alpine, and this I do not intend to change,” he insisted shortly after taking over as Renault Group CEO.

“The unique priority for the Formula 1 team is performance, improved performance this year and, of course, moreover, to succeed in 2026 with the new car. This is a unique priority given to Formula 1.”

The Alpine F1 team has endured a tumultuous period in recent years, with a raft of senior personnel departing the organisation.

That has led to a comparative under performance with the squad falling short of Laurent Rossi’s declared 100-race plan.

Indeed, rather than returning to winning ways, the Enstone squad currently sits at the foot of the Constructors’ Championship.

In an effort to steady the ship, Flavio Briatore was appointed as executive advisor to the squad by de Meo last year.

It marked the return to the team for the man who led it to world championships with Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso, but who was also banned from the sport by the FIA (which was later overturned) for his involvement in the Crashgate scandal of 2008.

His appointment preceded Renault’s decision to roll back its F1 involvement by closing its power unit programme. From F1 2026, Renault’s factory team will boast customer Mercedes engines.

It’s a move that was seen by many as a step towards a sale; shedding an expensive department that effectively restricted the pool of potential buyers to OEMs.

However, the squad has insisted that is not the case; PlanetF1.com understands it recently rejected a $1.2 billion bid without consideration – hardly the act of an owner interested in selling.

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The squad remains in a rebuilding phase given the prolonged upheaval within it.

As first reported by PlanetF1.com, Steve Nielsen will join the operation as managing director next month, stepping largely into the hole created by former team principal Oliver Oakes’ hasty exit following the Miami Grand Prix.

Most recently, Nielsen worked within Formula One Management, but also had a short spell with the FIA. Earlier in his career, he spent over a decade at Enstone, that tenure overlapping with Briatore’s time at the helm.

Since Oakes’ exit, Dave Greenwood has been fulfilling aspects of the team principal’s role as Alpine’s authorised person with the FIA – a role in which he is expected to continue.

Alpine last year finished sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, a result that this year entitles it to around $90 million in prize money.

Formula One Management pays out prize money based on the finishing order of last year’s championship, using a defined proportion of (projected) revenues from the current campaign.

However, should Alpine finish 10th in the championship, as it currently lies, its entitlements will reduce by an estimated $30 million for 2026.

That would place greater emphasis on both the need for strong sponsorship income and also the willingness for Renault Group to top up the budget.

This year, Alpine has added MSC Cruises to its sponsorship roster, a deal understood to have been brokered by Briatore, alongside the likes of Claro and Mercado Libre, both connected to the arrival of Franco Colapinto.

Alpine operates at the current F1 cost cap of $140.5 million. That will increase to $215 million next season as the cost cap encompasses a number of elements that are currently excluded.

The likely financial injection required from Renault Group is expected to still see the French manufacturer in a better position with its F1 commitment than it is now given it will shed its Viry engine programme, which costs in the region of $260 million annually according to de Meo.

Renault owns 76 per cent of the team, having sold a 24 per cent slice to a consortium of investors in December 2023 for approximately $216 million, valuing the outfit at around $900 million.

According to Sportico, that figure surged to $1.5 billion by last November, while Forbes optimistically valued it at $1.4 billion in July 2023.

At Renault Group level, the company recently issued an earnings downgrade ahead of the publication of its first half financial results, which saw the stock price plummet from €41.25 to €33.63. It closed yesterday at €31.23, more than 33 per cent down in the year to date.

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