Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo remains defiant that the marque’s Alpine Formula 1 squad is not up for sale amid its poor run of form.
Alpine has taken multiple backward steps in recent years amid a revolving door policy regarding senior personnel.
The underperforming A524, scorer of just five points across the opening nine rounds of the season has prompted speculation Renault could offload its F1 squad with potential bidders swirling.
However, with the likes of Andretti and even Chinese auto giant Geely lurking, de Meo has ruled out selling Renault’s F1 asset.
“I want to make this very clear,” de Meo told Autocar magazine. “There is no way we are going to give up.
“It’s not my style. We will not sell even a part of this thing. We don’t need the money. I’ve had people making offers left and right, then talking in the press about it. But we’re not interested. It would be stupid, and I won’t do it.”
L. de Meo’s comments contradict rumours ongoing in the F1 paddock.
F1 reporter Joe Saward reports that de Meo is looking to offload Alpine’s F1 power unit operation in Viry and is instead seeking a competitor to purchase power units from in its place.
It’s no secret that Alpine in its many guises has failed to pass muster as a power unit manufacturer ever since the beginning of F1’s hybrid era in 2014.
The marque’s lack of performance prompted Red Bull to depart for Honda and McLaren to do the same in favour of Mercedes.
Still, de Meo is well aware of the shortcomings of Alpine’s power unit.
“When we began the hybrid era [in 2014], our engine didn’t perform,” he said.
“We had been world champions with Red Bull but with hybrid, things went wrong.
“Even the engine we developed in 2021 had a 0.2s to 0.5s disadvantage every lap.
“And this year we’ve screwed up with the car. If you combine everything, we’re up to 1.5s from where we need to be.”
So how will de Meo, Renault and Alpine turn their collective fortunes around?
The Renault CEO points towards recruitment and mindset changes to improve the F1 team’s fortunes.
“The first is a quality team of top-notch people,” he said.
“The second is racing rage, an obsession to win. The third is collaboration and trust throughout the team, a spirit of cooperation that makes things seem easier.
“Alpine should be one of the teams in F1 with the broadest shoulders, because it has the backing of the Renault Group.
“I don’t think we deserve to be a top team at present, but we’re not in F1 to be tourists so we need to work hard.
“Sure, we’ve made mistakes. It happens. But I think we’re right to put F1 at the core of Alpine, and to paint the car blue to represent a distinctive automotive culture.
“This brand is totally legitimate because it was always in competition. But it can do much better, and I don’t want to miss the opportunity.”
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