formula 1
Controversial returnee Briatore – “We have to give him a chance”
Flavio Briatore is back on the grid as Alpine’s new managing advisor. Photo
© Hasan Bratic/dpa
Flavio Briatore was partly responsible for one of the biggest Formula 1 scandals. Now the Italian is returning to the premier class of motorsport as a consultant. Does Briatore deserve a second chance?
Despite being involved in one of the biggest Formula 1 scandals, the returnee Flavio Briatore received support from the team bosses. “We have to give him the chance to recover from such situations. I have come to know Flavio as an extremely clever businessman. He has a lot of know-how in Formula 1,” said Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff on the sidelines of the Barcelona Grand Prix about his friend Briatore.
The 74-year-old will work as chief advisor to Renault subsidiary Alpine. “Everyone deserves the opportunity to come back,” Wolff continued.
In the early 1990s, Briatore lured Michael Schumacher to Benetton. In 1994 and 1995, the Kerpen native won the first two of his seven world championship titles under the Italian team boss. Briatore later became team boss at Renault and won the world championship with Fernando Alonso in 2005 and 2006.
Briatore knows how to make deals
Because of his involvement in the scandal surrounding an intentional accident involving Brazilian Nelson Piquet Jr. in Singapore in 2008, Briatore was initially banned for life by the world motorsports association FIA. However, a French court later ruled that the ban was invalid.
“I was never really away,” said Briatore, who, among other things, ensured that Azerbaijan was included in the Formula 1 calendar in 2016. Most recently, the busy businessman also worked as a brand ambassador for Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
Briatore and the Renault boss are confidants
At Alpine, Briatore will report directly to Renault CEO Luca de Meo. “We get on very well. We have realized that we have the same vision for the team,” Briatore told Italian TV channel Sky.
De Meo is thinking about turning the Alpine factory team into a customer team when the new regulations are introduced in 2026. Mercedes is being considered as an engine partner. “There is no decision and no ongoing negotiations. We are evaluating all options to become competitive again,” Briatore told the Italian newspaper “La Repubblica”.
“We need smart people in Formula 1”
And what about rumors about a sale of Alpine, in which an investor group led by Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds owns 24 percent of the shares? Briatore assured that he “100 percent” denied the idea of a sale.
Kick-Sauber team boss Alessandro Alunni Bravi said of the returnee: “We need smart people in Formula 1.” Alpine team boss Bruno Famin hopes that Briatore will provide impetus for his lagging racing team. “He knows Formula 1 very well, he knows a lot of people. I am sure that he will help us to develop the team faster and better,” said Famin in Barcelona.