Why Flavio Briatore cannot be Alpine F1 team principal at Imola

Flavio Briatore will not be viewed by F1’s governing body as being the person responsible for Alpine at this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

The 75-year-old Italian cannot be team principal because “he is not a member of staff, and does not hold an F1 licence, as is required of people in such authority by the FIA’s competitor’s staff registration system”, BBC Sport report.

Briatore is employed by Alpine’s parent company Renault on a consultancy basis, having returned to the Enstone-based squad last year when he was named as executive advisor.

While Briatore is the de facto boss of the Alpine F1 team following the unexpected departure of team principal Oliver Oakes following the Miami Grand Prix, he won’t be responsible for the team in the eyes of the FIA.

After Oakes’ shock resignation for personal reasons, Alpine said Briatore would be “covering the duties previously performed” by the Briton.

Alpine have informed BBC Sport that racing director Dave Greenwood will be the “dedicated responsible person” in the absence of a new team principal being formally named.

When questioned why Briatore is not a staff member or licence holder, an Alpine spokesperson told BBC Sport: "Flavio came into the team as executive adviser and remains a consultant. There's nothing more to it, or to read into it.”

Meanwhile, an FIA spokesperson said: "Alpine have complied with all regulatory requirements relating to the departure of Mr Oakes, and have submitted their updated staff registration.

"We believe it is down to Alpine to provide an update on their management structure so we will not comment on any specific person holding a certificate of registration.”

Briatore’s return to F1 last year was controversial because he received a lifetime ban for his involvement in fixing the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

He was part of the “Crashgate” scandal which saw his driver Nelson Piquet Jr deliberately crash to cause a Safety Car which helped Renault teammate Fernando Alonso win the race.

But Briatore’s lifetime ban from F1 was overturned by a French court, paving the way for his comeback in May 2024.

No rift between Briatore and Oakes 

Briatore dismissed speculation that Oakes’ exit was caused by a disagreement between the pair over Alpine’s brutal decision to replace Jack Doohan with Franco Colapinto for the next five races.

"A lot has been said incorrectly associating the decision of Oli resigning to an alleged disagreement, or that we shared different views. This is completely false and far from the truth," Briatore said in a statement posted on his Instagram account.

"Me and Oli have a very good relationship and had long-term ambitions to drive this team forward together.

"We accept Oli's request to resign and have therefore accepted his resignation.

"The reasons are not related to the team and are of a personal nature.

"I will continue to be more and more involved with the team, together with the strong management we already have in place.

"We will work hard on improving our position this season and preparing for 2026."