Former Renault boss, Cyril Abiteboul believes that Alpine needs a lead driver in the mould of Lewis Hamilton or Max Verstappen.

The Frenchman, who now leads Hyundai's WRC programme, was speaking in the aftermath of last weekend's firing of Otmar Szafnauer and Alan Permane, and the departure of Pat Fry for Williams.

A year on from the debacle which saw the French team lose Fernando Alonso to Aston Martin and Oscar Piastri to McLaren, Alpine appears to be in freefall with no sign of it coming to an end anytime soon.

While the overall team management is in the process of being restructured, Abiteboul, who left Renault in 2021 as it morphed into Alpine, believes the team needs on-track leadership also.

Without naming names, Abiteboul, who was responsible for luring Daniel Ricciardo to Renault from Red Bull, believes that neither Esteban Ocon or Pierre Gasly has what it takes to lead a team.

"Two names is one too many," he tells France Info. "When you close your eyes and think of Mercedes, you think of Lewis Hamilton, even though Nico Rosberg did some extraordinary things. When you think of Red Bull, you think of the first cycle around Sebastian Vettel, then the second cycle around Max Verstappen.

"You need a driver who is also a bit of a team boss," he continues, "and this power of personification is fundamental. At the moment, the grid is very competitive with all cars finishing on the same lap. In a while, there will be a near-level playing field. What will make the difference is ambition and determination.

"Every element that is changed potentially puts the team spirit and culture at risk," he warns. "It is these two aspects in particular that are lacking at Alpine.

"The investments have been made, the resources, the group's ambitions, the corporate strategy with the Alpine brand, it's all there.

"When a team has everything, it needs something that transcends it, someone to drive it. The strength of an individual who can pull 1,000 people together is very unifying."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by ARL, 06/08/2023 9:39

"Or they could just throw the towel in, accept their place as the current rudderless team on the grid, get sponsorship from Twitter/X/whateveritisthisweek and sign up Yuji Ide. He was still racing up to last year.

There has been a lot of talk recently of historically incompetent corporate interference in F1 teams, but this seems a future classic lesson in the making. All we need now is a team manager jumping up and down on a front wing that he dislikes. (Copyright Guenter Schmid)"

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2. Posted by kenji, 04/08/2023 0:24

"With limited insider information it is almost impossible to understand what it is that's so sadly lacking at Renault. However I do believe that the name of the team should revert...Alpine is such a non name. This current name carries no heritage and that is one of the main ingredients in morale boosting. That said it's a very minor point in the sum total but as it's been said, they need two new elements to help them lift their game...a new TP with the chops to attract new driving talent. From limited external observation they are at best mercurial and there is little or no consistency in performance. Get some of that happening and then you can see where the major emphasis needs to be applied. ATPIT they are a gallimaufery."

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3. Posted by BrightonCorgi, 03/08/2023 18:39

"They need V10 and launch control; that's when they were winning. Alonso was like a rocket off the starting line.

In all seriousness; it "fill in the blank" team could use Verstappen or Hamilton.

Alpine is hardly a global brand and is not a brand in F1's brightest market; USA. If the Andretti's cannot get in on their own, Alpine or Haas are an option."

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4. Posted by Jean-Pierre, 03/08/2023 18:29

"or an Alonso or a Piastry... (they potentially could have had both). The entire management should be fired"

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5. Posted by BillH, 03/08/2023 18:24

"Alpine's issues are leadership issues, as issues are in all organisations.
Someone has realised this, hence putting in the recent changes.
The question is, have the correct leadership issues been identified i.e. the right people moved on and the right people promoted?
I can see where Abiteboul is going with the thinking around a strong driver needed to pull the team along, and perhaps this is what Sauber have done with Bottas to some degree while having a less experienced driver.
Alpine have two drivers that are roughly at the same level, as do Ferrari.
What any team needs is someone, a leader (can be a driver or team boss) that they are prepared to do everything they can, to crawl over broken glass for metaphorically speaking. Someone they are loyal to, not just taking a pay cheque.
Unfortunately this is where the corporate side of team ownership can get in the way, where the brand is seen as the key thing rather than the push to be best racing team in the world."

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6. Posted by Endre, 03/08/2023 14:53

"Their biggest issue is not even the car, but the team "culture". They have no chance signing someone of that caliber until they sort out what is going on. "

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7. Posted by meatball, 03/08/2023 14:06

"they also need a car that a Max Or Lewis calibre driver would want to drive and team management that isn't a complete cluster fxxk. Maybe start there. "Build it and they will come""

Alpine needs a Hamilton or a Verstappen

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