Doohan gone

There is no doubt that Alpine has been in an extended state of turmoil making them look like clowns. If Briatore is given the freedom to do what he does then the likelihood of success is high. Briatore may be a first class bastard but his track record is quite good in F1. Yes we all know about crash gate but the reality is that the old establishment hated Briatore and the Piquet incident was just what they needed to get rid of him for a while. I think he is an awful guy but in F1 he knows how to deliver.

 

At least at his age now he won't be distracted by chasing young women.

 

Agreed.

 

Briatore is old news and will be more successful ensuring a sale of the team than any forward progress. He has zero business in F1. The sport is not what it was when he left. Its a pure symbol of the absurd management in place at Renault proper. A floundering, direction-less operation that the entire effort is. Let me know how attractive this team is to any forward thinking engineer or potential team leader. The team has value only because of F1's financial strength as a complete entity.

 

In other words: oh so French

C'est chic.

 

Wise move from Piastri to join McLaren an leaving Alpine behind!

 

Oliver Oakes (the boss of the F2 team Hi-Tech) took the job of team principal at Alpine with the intention of buying it outright in future.
If I remember right, he made the move after Hi-Tech application to enter F1 was turned down.
In the meantime, De Meo decided to switch to Mercedes power, which was a wise decision.
Also Renault had sold 25% team shares to US investors. All that was promising for the Enstone team.
Then, invited by De Meo, Briatore came on the scene, as counselor, which probably did put a few noses out of joint.
The lack of performance from Doohan became obvious, and Briatore wanted Colapinto to replace him.
Probably a clash of personalities between Briatore and Oakes is the root cause of this divorce.
s.

 

You don't say !!!

 

Come to think of it, the guy is either a genius or super lucky. He pulled a "Hamilton to Mercedes" kinda deal. McLaren was nowhere its peak when Piastri jumped ship.

 

Thank-you Mark Webber!!!!

 

Don't count Oakes out of F1 just yet.

Rumor-mill:

Oakes is being eyed as the next TP for RedBull and will replace Horner.

 

Whoa!

 

Didn't see that one coming !

Is Christian Horner leaving then ?

 

Whether he's leaving OR he gets voted out.

..........to be continued.

 

If this rumor materialises, and Oakes already knew, it will make him leaving Alpine viewed differently (there's no question RB is currently a better team than Alpine, so it's the kind of offer that cannot be refused).

 

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Applies to RedBull too

 

I thought that’s how they signal the teams and commercial rights holder reaching a new Conclave Agreement.

 

The Telegraph reported on Wednesday that William Oakes was remanded in custody last weekend, having been arrested while carrying “a large amount of cash”.

Oliver Oakes’ resignation from the Alpine team principal role was announced on Tuesday night.

The Telegraph reported on Wednesday that William Oakes was remanded in custody last weekend, having been arrested while carrying “a large amount of cash”.

Oliver Oakes’ resignation from the Alpine team principal role was announced on Tuesday night.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police told The Telegraph: “William Oakes, 31, of Rugby was charged with transferring criminal property on Friday, May 2 after he was stopped in the Silverstone Park area in Northamptonshire on Thursday, May 1, 2025 in possession of a large amount of cash. He appeared before Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, May 3, and remanded in custody.”

The Oakes brothers are listed as the directors of the Hitech Global Holdings firm that operates the Hitech racing teams that Oliver led before moving into F1 with Alpine.


A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police told The Telegraph: “William Oakes, 31, of Rugby was charged with transferring criminal property on Friday, May 2 after he was stopped in the Silverstone Park area in Northamptonshire on Thursday, May 1, 2025 in possession of a large amount of cash. He appeared before Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, May 3, and remanded in custody.”

The Oakes brothers are listed as the directors of the Hitech Global Holdings firm that operates the Hitech racing teams that Oliver led before moving into F1 with Alpine.

 

Alpine has already stayed that Oliver's departure had nothing to do with his brother's matter.

 

Oaks refused to speak with the press as well given this is a criminal investigation.
- Flavio Briatore has denied that Oliver Oakes resigned from his role as Alpine Formula 1 team principal because of the team's decision to swap Franco Colapinto and Jack Doohan with immediate effect.

 

Not proven innocent yet. Apparently the Oakes intended to buy Alpine with Mazepin´s money through a Maltese society (or another of those fishy havens) after Hi Tech was rejected to enter F1. Righ after the F1 race, Oliver Oakes didn´t return to his home: he flew right to a Middle-Eastern country which doesn´t make exttraditions so, although I´m not Sherlock, I suspect he was part of the plot.

 

Hmmm interesting, let's see how this evolves. Mazepin is a fishy buddy of Putin...

By the way in my previous post I meant to write stated not stayed.

 

The plot thickens.

There is never a dull moment at Alpine, it seems ...

 

AND he should have been thrown in prison ....

 

Personally, i think the timeline these guys are given .... ridiculous. I can accept if testing was unlimited, and they still perform like crap, then yes, they have to go.