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The revival of the Alpine team on the Formula 1 track is expected to be boosted by the arrival of more important technical recruits who have now started working with the team.
Three senior officials started at the team on July 1, arriving from Red Bull and Ferrari.
Michael Broadhurst and Finn Dhanani return to Enstone as Chief Aerodynamicist and Head of Vehicle Performance respectively.
Both join from Red Bull Racing having worked with the team in its previous incarnations – Broadhurst in the aerodynamics department over a seven-year period, most recently as chief aerodynamicist in 2016 before joining McLaren, and Dhanani from 2006 to 2011 at the start of his Formula 1 career.
Their arrival coincides with Jacopo Fantoni taking over as deputy chief engineer. Fantoni was a colleague of newly appointed Alpine chief technical officer David Sanchez during his 13-year career at Ferrari, and was most recently head of the simulation department in the design office.
The first three additions, along with others that will also start in July, help strengthen the technical team that has undergone a major review this year. Previous technical director Matt Harman and head of aerodynamics Dirk de Beer resigned early in 2024, following problems with the car’s winter build, and departed shortly after the season started in very poor fashion in Bahrain.
The appointment of Broadhurst, previously McLaren’s vice president of aerodynamics and Red Bull’s chief aerodynamicist, addresses Alpine’s aero shortcomings by adding significant experience and expertise to a key department. Similarly, Finn’s arrival from a key role as Red Bull’s vehicle performance team leader helps bolster another important area following the loss of performance chief Richard Frith to Williams.
They will all work within a technical structure that has been revised to include three pillars following Harman’s departure: aerodynamics (David Wheater), performance (Ciaron Pilbeam) and engineering (Joe Purnell), with Sanchez added to the top of the technical tree in a new role when he was unexpectedly available following his shock exit from McLaren just a few months later.
The number of employees at the Alpine team has seen steady growth in recent years as Renault finally realized that its initial goal of fighting the major Formula 1 teams with 85% of its resources had failed to restore Instone to the necessary strength.
Attendance was 850 people at this time two years ago, and is now at around 1,000, although that number still needs to increase to reach close to the biggest Formula 1 teams.
Yet, in the wake of a turbulent 12 months – it’s been almost a year since Alpine announced mid-week the dismissal of team principal Otmar Szafnauer and long-serving sporting director Alain Biermann – these recruits have helped shift Alpine’s narrative more towards a team of growth and momentum, even if it’s all relative.
Alpine has scored points in the last four events, moving from last in the championship to eighth, and has qualified in the top 10 three times in that period. What was once the slowest car in Formula 1 is now at least a regular Q3 contender and a points threat.
This is still well below the expectations of the Formula 1 works team, but it is something Renault is publicly stating it is determined to improve.
The controversial return of Flavio Briatore as an executive advisor is intended to support this, with the team looking to sign Carlos Sainz to try to enhance his driving talent after deciding to replace Esteban Ocon.
Related to this is the possibility of canceling its engine work program in favor of the Mercedes engine deal.
This appears to have been passed on to Sainz, and while this may be a public admission of failure that Renault is unable to produce an engine capable of success in Formula 1, it is part of a wider review to determine how best the team itself can achieve success.
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