The principal of the Alpine Formula 1 team, Bruno Famin, is not concerned about the controversy surrounding Flavio Briatore when making decisions for the team. Briatore, who led the Enstone-based Alpine team to four world championships in the 1990s and 2000s, has been appointed as an Executive Consultant, despite his involvement in the ‘Crashgate’ scandal in Singapore. This scandal involved Briatore conspiring to intentionally crash a Renault driver during the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. However, Famin and Alpine believe that Briatore’s experience and knowledge of Formula 1 outweigh any past controversies. They see his appointment as an opportunity to improve the team’s performance and are using all available resources to strengthen the team.
During the Friday press conference, Toto Wolff, the head of the Mercedes Formula 1 team, Fred Vasseur, the head of the Ferrari F1 team, and Alessandro Alunni Bravi, the representative of the Sauber team, were present with Famin. The three individuals commented on Briatore’s appointment, emphasizing his experience and the significant amount of time that has passed since the controversy known as ‘Crashgate’, which was 15 years ago. They believe that this period of time has paved the way for a second chance for Briatore.
Wolff expressed his belief that people should have the opportunity to recover from such situations. He described Briatore as an extremely intelligent businessman with extensive knowledge in Formula 1. Over the past decade, Wolff has had more contact with Briatore and developed a friendly relationship with him. He believes that Briatore’s ideas have been helpful and that having another intelligent mind like his at Alpine would be beneficial for the team’s current situation.
Vasseur, the head of the Ferrari Formula 1 team, acknowledged the past controversy involving Briatore, but stated that he believes Briatore has paid the price for his actions and should now be allowed to return.
Alunni Bravi, the representative of the Sauber team, admitted that he does not have a personal relationship with Briatore and therefore cannot judge him. However, he recognized Briatore’s history in Formula 1 and the contributions he made on the commercial side of the sport. Alunni Bravi believes that Formula 1 needs intelligent individuals like Briatore.
Although intelligence is important, it is worth noting that Alpine has dismissed many intelligent individuals in recent years who did not resort to dangerous means to manipulate race results.
