The renewal (or not) of Fernando Alonso by Alpine may begin to become a thorny issue and the CEO of the Renault Group, Luca de Meo, wanted to offer his point of view.
Fernando Alonso vs. Oscar Piastri, or present versus future. That’s the choice Alpine has to make heading into 2023. And what might seem like an obvious decision might not be so in the eyes of some.
The question is what the people who make decisions at Alpine think, and while Laurent Rossi and Otmar Szafnauer (CEO of Alpine Cars and director of Alpine F1 respectively) have already made it clear that they hold Fernando Alonso in high regard, the only thing certain is that the renewal has not yet arrived.
“Fernando is a legend, we cannot separate him as if he were just another employee, he has to want to too”
Teams don’t usually like this situation because generates debate, rumors and tension around them. And formations like McLaren or Ferrari, renewing at the beginning of the season drivers with a contract about to end to avoid speculation, attest to this.
However, it seems that Alpine is going to follow the conventional strategy, dragging out the theme until at least the summer.
Alonzo is a legend
Luca de Meo he visited the team at the Spanish Grand Prix, where he spoke to various Spanish media. And he did not hesitate to offer his opinion on the ‘Alonso case’ and the plans that Alpine has with Oscar Piastri, who already demands a seat as a starting driver in Formula 1.
“Fernando is very important in the plan, he has a lot of experience. When you have to make the team grow, he is a bit of a godfather. In addition, Fernando has played the Champions League final and has won it”, begins by saying the CEO of the Renault Group to Mark.
Loading tweet…
1528356728718303232
“He knows what we have to do to win. Besides, he not only has experience, but It has a very high level of demand that helps the team to grow». And it is more than evident that Alpine needs that kind of input.
But Luca de Meo does not hide that the inexorable passage of time will end up giving priority to Oscar Piastri. Although the question is when that time will come and if it will happen before Fernando Alonso begins to decline in his performance (which has not happened yet).
«We combine the experience of Alonso with the youth of Ocon (contract until 2024) and now Piastri enters. It is a challenge to find a position for the three. The solution will not be 100% pleasing to everyone, but we believe that we have to give each of them a chance”, admits Luca de Meo.
«We have to protect the three drivers and the one they say is a super talent like Piastri. Fernando is 41 years old and Piastri 21, the time for change will come. Fernando is a legend, we cannot decide to separate him as if he were another Alpine employee, he has to want to too », he reiterates.
Does Alonso want to continue in Alpine?
But in this story not only one part decides: the other question is whether Fernando Alonso wants to continue in Alpine or prefers to try his luck in another team.
There is a lot of talk about aston martin interestbut the only certainty so far is that the Spaniard claims to have a preference for Alpine while making it clear that he does not close the door to other teams that he considers more competitive.
Meanwhile, Luca de Meo tries to placate criticism of Alpine for its mediocre performance and poor progression. “No one knows when you are going to be champion. You have to see the progression. There are weekends that we go better and others worse. Three years to build a competitive team is normal. Red Bull or Mercedes when they entered, it took a while »recalls the Italian leader.
Source: Mark
/
Photos: Alpine F1 Team