Why Alpine is taking a fresh approach to delivering F1 glory

A multitude of factors prove to be too burdensome in the end, but a common thread is that the cost of advancing to Formula 1 is proving to be unsustainable and company boards are too impatient for short-term progress.

When current Alpine F1 CEO Laurent Rossi talks about a 100-race plan to bring the French manufacturer to the top of F1 on a regular basis, you might think history will repeat itself.

In almost 20 races in its program, Alpine has won a victory with Esteban Ocon’s triumph in Hungary, but his overall form in F1 seems to have reached a plateau.

If the season ends where it currently is, it will be the third year in a row that the team has finished fifth in the Constructors’ Championship.

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The momentum forward seems to have stalled, so it’s easy to doubt that his vision of being ahead can be achieved in another 80 races.

But, as Rossi explains in an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com, his situation is very different than in the past of manufacturer teams.

Because a combination of the upper cost limit of Formula 1, a new rule era and an overall concept by him and Renault boss Luca de Meo puts the team in a position of long-term strength.

Gone are the fears of throwing money into a bottomless pit, and the pressure to meet short-term performance goals is gone.

Instead, the focus will be on delivering the progress and performance necessary to be where it wants to be at the end of its plan. It’s a sprint, not a marathon.

“Wherever we are at the beginning of next year, I will not deviate from the goal,” explains Rossi.

“We’ll do it race after race, season after season. We won’t change the goal and you won’t see me writhing and changing the program just to do better two races into the season. We’re taking our time to get where we want.

Laurent Rossi, CEO, Alpine F1 and Esteban Ocon, Alpine F1, 1st place on the podium

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

“We want to avoid the pitfalls of short-term construction, which has cost many teams a lot in the past. We want to be able to build for the long term. “

“It’s a radical change in the way we look at Formula One and how we build performance, but it’s the way you should do it if you want to perform.

“The results of today’s top teams are the result of many years of bad results, bottoming the rankings, one stone at a time so the new organization can deliver when it matters. That’s what I want to do.”

The confidence of being able to make long-term decisions is reinforced by the full support of Renault de Meo, who approved the vision last year as part of a major overhaul of the French manufacturer’s individual brands.

Alpine’s ability to think long-term comes from the fact that de Meo wants just that.

Rossi adds: “The context is actually incredibly favorable because Luca de Meo is first and foremost the architect behind it.

“He has a very clear idea of ​​what it takes to climb the ladder and the time it takes to do it, so he’s completely in tune with this plan, the 100 races plan and the fact that this is ours should bring the top. “

In addition, de Meo’s patience is encouraged by the changed financial structure in Formula 1, which means that costs are lower than in the past – and the budgets no longer get out of hand.

Esteban Ocon, Alpine F1

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Rossi added, “Having a chassis cost cap is an incredibly game-changing factor. Before, you could choose to invest around $ 200 million over three or four years to get where you wanted to be.

“But then all of a sudden a newcomer could walk in and spend $ 400 million a year. Granted, they don’t have the experience or skill, but they could catch up pretty quickly and it would change the natural order.

“It’s over. Now everyone has to play with the same amount of money on the chassis side.

“In addition, we are not just a Formula One team. We also have a road car division, and the road car division will also bear fruit in terms of profit because we will have more than just one car.” .

“We will have at least three cars in 2024, 2025 and 2026, and more cars will very likely follow suit. And these cars will generate profits that will help finance motorsport activities.

“Ultimately, our goal is to break even by 2025, in addition to placing on the podium in the Alpine Division.

“So that means that the Renault Group will have to invest less and less in the team over time. It’s actually a very positive cycle. And we developed this plan with Luca de Meo.

“He’s the architect of this plan and it’s great to have that kind of alignment between the group and me. Because I know what I’m doing and I know where I’m going.”

Although Alpine’s F1 era is only just beginning its first season, with a new structure that Rossi introduced earlier this year, the Frenchman isn’t afraid to shake things up right now.

He’s frank that the Enstone-based team didn’t have a car as fast as he would have liked. Operationally, however, the squad was strong and it was a good reward to keep his fifth place until the end of the season.

Fernando Alonso, Alps A521

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

But as the nature of F1 changes next year with the introduction of the new rule era, Rossi suggests the team need to make some changes: with shifts in where resources are put to ensure maximum returns are on the way.

“We have to develop the team a bit,” he said. “I think the team has moved from P9 to P5 in the last few years before the plateau we have reached.

“But now, to get to the next level and become the best of the top teams, rather than just the best of the rest, further development is required.

“So I want to keep the momentum from the previous season, so I want to keep this fifth place. I don’t want us to fall behind.”

“We learned a lot operationally this year, which is always a plus. We will use that next year.

“But then we have to build muscle to grow and get from P5 to P1 in the next few years, race after race, season after season. That’s a different story. This is a different chapter. But I definitely want more than that P5 for sure. “

The 100-race plan puts Alpine on roughly the same glide path as Aston Martin, who revealed its bold investment and new factory plan to take it to the top of F1.

But what can Rossi do in an extremely competitive field that already includes big hits like Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren with which it can achieve its goal?

“Well, one thing is for sure, the fact that we are a factory team,” he said.

“To be honest, the data shows that there are times when the chassis, the aerodynamics, were more important. Then it was the engine and then the driver. Ultimately, today it’s a combination of the three.

“It’s safe and we already have the option of integrating a PU into the chassis as best as possible because we are a works team. Others do not have the luxury, others will have to take the engine as it is made, the “how it is designed, how it was developed, and try to adapt their chassis.

“We have a completely different approach that only three teams can: Ferrari, Mercedes and ourselves. So that’s a big plus for us.

Esteban Ocon, Alpine A521, Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes W12

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

“Then we also have 45 years of experience in Formula 1, which is very important because even if you invest a lot, we have seen in the recent past that many teams with considerable financial resources could not overcome their lack of experience when it came to that is about designing, developing and finishing a car at the right time.

“There are so many parameters where you can’t buy experience. We have this. I think that’s a big plus too.

“Then we have a large industrial group behind us. It seems anecdotal, but actually it’s pretty important. Like any other discipline or industry, Formula 1 will deal more and more with data, with artificial intelligence, with new ways of building performance.

“So if you are dealing with and being supported by a group that has been doing this for 20 years and has tremendous experience in these areas, that is a plus.

“We have experts in many fields that we can bring together in a moment. And that is also very important, because in the future this can become very decisive when building performance, alongside the traditional drivers I just mentioned: experience and skill.

“Being able to perform in critical breakthrough areas like data, AI, machine learning and the like will be paramount in my opinion.”

For Rossi, 2021 may not have delivered everything he might have wished for, but his ambition for the team was not dampened. He knows where the team should go and how he wants to get it there.

“We want to be on the podium again and I want the team to win,” he said. “As simple as that.

“I don’t want us to compete for the best of the rest or whatever. We have to strive for victory. We have to strive for it: and in times of cost caps that is not out of reach if you are a factory team.” with 45 years of experience.

“It’s not entirely impossible. It’s actually very possible, very sensible. So that’s the team’s goal. I gave it to them.”

Esteban Ocon, Alpine A521, 1st place, wins on the pit wall to the delight of his team

Photo by: Jerry Andre / Motorsport Images