Oliver Oakes calm about the scale of the task at Alpine : “Everyone dreams of managing an F1 team”

Back to school in Formula 1 in Zandvoort was the opportunity to discover new faces in the paddock. One of them was particularly awaited: that of Oliver Oakes, new principal director ofAlpine. The British, who took over from Bruno Famin at the head of the team during the summer break, experienced his first Grand Prix as Team Principal during the Dutch round. In particular, he was able to see how his team worked during a race weekend and his first points in Formula 1 thanks to Pierre Gasly, 9th in Zandvoort.

Obviously, in the Netherlands, Oliver Oakes – fourth Team Principal ofAlpine in four years – attracted media attention and did not escape questions about his appointment within a team in full doubt and in full reconstruction. The man who co-founded and then led HitechGP in promotional formulas confided his pride in now leading a Formula 1 team, what's more Alpine, and measures the work to be accomplished to take the A arrowed to the heights.

“I have no pressure”

“At the end of the day, we all know what happened before. There are doubts about the magnitude of the task, but I also think that you have to like enstone, he declared to the British television Sky Sports in Zandvoort. The affection there, you walk around this place and you want to be a part of it, you want to lead this team. Once you've done that, there are no more questions to ask. Everyone dreams of managing an F1 team. I'm lucky enough to be doing it at a young age, which everyone keeps reminding me of, so I don't have any pressure. »

Despite his long experience as Team Principal at HitechGP, Oliver Oakes recognizes that the world of Formula 1 is in another dimension, and appreciates his responsibilities at the head of a team of a thousand people. “There’s a lot to take in, obviously there are a lot more people. It's a big responsibility to manage Enstone, but in reality it's the same thing [as in the promotional formula]: there are racing cars and it's about getting the team to work together. This is all pretty normal and as expected. »

Oakes facing huge construction sites at Alpine

Oliver Oakes will have the last nine Grands Prix of the 2024 season to determine the course to follow for Alpine, for 2025, 2026 and beyond. Chosen by Luca de Meo and Flavio Briatore to lead the A arrow from the soft underbelly of the grid to a top team, the Briton will have his work cut out for him in the coming years. A challenge that does not scare him: moreover, the ex-driver confided that he had been chosen thanks to his profile “hungry and enthusiastic” for “bring a competitive spirit back to the team”.

“I think in recent years there have been things that [Alpine] did well and others that were not done well enough. I think you saw at the start of the year that the car was not what we wanted. I hope next year we can start the year better”, waits for Oliver Oakes.

Freed from the problem of the second driver in 2025 with the tenure of Jack Doohan alongside Pierre Gasly, the English leader will be able to focus on long-term projects with 2026 in focus. He will also have to deal with hot topics internally, particularly on the question of the future of Viry. However, at Zandvoort, neither he nor Flavio Briatore had a word on the engine program or the Ile-de-France factory…

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