New Alpine Managing Director Steve Nielsen has outlined his ambitions and plans for the beleaguered team as it prepares for the final Formula 1 races in 2025.
Steve Nielsen has assumed the role of Managing Director at Alpine following his confirmation earlier in the year, reporting to Executive Advisor Flavio Briatore.
Nielsen is no stranger to the Enstone based team, having served as Sporting Director during its championship winning years as Renault in 2005 and 2006.
Nielsen faces a mammoth task the situation around at the beleaguered team, with Alpine currently rooted to the bottom of the Constructors Championship.
Speaking via a social media post, he outlined his goals and plans for Alpine, praising the personnel and facilities at Enstone as he began his tenure at the helm.
“We have got great facilities, but the product we’ve put on the track doesn’t reflect the effort of the people here, and the facilities we have here,” he said.
“My top priority is to make sure that Enstone produce the best car we can.”
Nielsen focused on Alpine long term success
In his remarks, Nielsen emphasised the urgency to focus on longer term thinking and strategy as the team plots a return to glory after a dramatic slump in form since 2021.
“You have to have an eye on the future. You have to sacrifice short-term success and invest in the future, and we’re going through that at the moment,” he explained.
“I’m a great believer that you find out more about people when things go badly than when things go well, because you see what people are really made of. There are those people that are willing to dig deep, find an extra gear and keep pushing.”
Alpine hopes to make visible gains in 2026 as it transitions to Mercedes power for F1’s new technical regulations despite Renault Group ownership.
Losing its factory status, Renault has not provided customer engines to a rival since the end of 2020 season, when McLaren ended its deal with the much maligned manufacturer.
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