Hot Take: Flavio Briatore Needs to Say “Arrivederci” to His Position in Formula 1
Every F1 fan knows that the industry is brutal and quick when it comes to decisions. Driver swaps bring out the worst in the sport, and the new drama going down at Alpine is no different. From Jack Doohan’s replacement to Oliver Oakes’ firing, the French team is facing great leadership instability and uncertainty. Where did all of their problems come from? Let’s break it down.
Flavio Briatore’s name is well-known in the world of motorsport, but not for many positive achievements. Briatore’s career got off to an infamously rocky start after he fell in with Italian embezzlers and mobsters, relationships which led to him being charged and convicted in 1979 on the basis of fraudulent bankruptcy practices. Briatore was sentenced to four and a half years in prison, but instead avoided jail and was granted amnesty in Milan, forming a close relationship with clothing entrepreneur Luciano Benetton while he was there. Benetton entered F1 racing as a sponsor in 1983 for both Tyrrell Racing and Alfa Romeo. When Benetton later renamed the Toleman F1 Team to Benetton Formula Limited, Briatore accompanied him as Commercial Director and later, Managing Director. Briatore’s role was essential to Benetton’s establishment as a competitive team. In the spring of 2000, Renault bought Benetton and Briatore was brought on as the team’s manager.
Flavio Briatore with ex-wife Heidi Klum at the Monaco Grand Prix. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Briatore faced his moment of greatest scandal during the 2008 Formula 1 season with the notorious Crashgate at the Singapore Grand Prix. As team manager, Briatore made many racing calls, and this was one of the most controversial in the sport’s history. Briatore was believed to have ordered his driver Nelson Piquet Jr. to purposely crash his car in order for Fernando Alonso to take a pit stop under the yellow flag and therefore keep his position behind the safety car, which allowed Alonso to finish the race in first place. Briatore denied the charges vehemently, but it was no use: the World Motor Sport issued an indefinite ban on Briatore for purposely endangering a driver’s life during a race (the decision was overturned only 1 year later by a French court that declared the matter out of the FIA’s control. Briatore was also granted €15,000 compensation, a much smaller amount than his hoped for €1m).
Currently, Briatore serves as an Executive Advisor and the de facto Team Principal at Alpine, holding more power than necessary, overshadowing Racing Director and actual Team Principal Dave Greenwood. After Oliver Oakes’ resignation (which many speculate was forced), Briatore has massively taken over authority in all parts of the team. Oakes supported Jack Doohan’s career at Alpine while Briatore notoriously backed Franco Colapinto, and many fans and journalists believe that the driver swap may have caused tension between the two figures and resulted in Oakes’ decision to leave the team. Colapinto has performed poorly since taking the seat at Alpine, and it is unclear what results Alpine hoped for after switching out a bad driver for a slightly better driver, still using the same objectively subpar car.
Briatore and Oliver Oakes before their relationship was destroyed. Photo courtesy of Crash.
Briatore’s troublesome past and current drama at Alpine begs the question: why is he still here? Should he even have been allowed back into the sport in the first place? The one good thing to come out of Alpine’s racing lately is Pierre Gasly scoring a handful of points in the past few races, but everything else going down at Alpine has been rough. In my opinion, Briatore brings nothing to the table but a bad reputation and an uneasy leadership, and he needs to leave the sport - for good this time. As always, thanks for reading, and let me know your position on this issue.
Lights out and away we go,
Lucy xx
