Alpine proves itself once again as a graveyard for team principals.Oakes has been with the French squad since last August, and initially, it seemed like a perfect marriage. The friendly Brit is an open, approachable personality, someone who was beloved within the organization. But reportedly, there was one problem in carrying out his duties, namely Flavio Briatore.

The Italian (75) was appointed as the Executive Advisor to the Formula 1 team by Renault CEO Luca de Meo in May last year. Briatore was given an extensive mandate; he could decide who to recruit and who to dismiss. It was also Briatore who decided that Alpine would stop its own power unit for Formula 1 and become a customer team of Mercedes.

In short, these were all tasks and decisions that would normally be made by the team principal. Oliver Oakes, who reportedly did not always see eye to eye with Briatore. For example, it was the Italian who wanted to sideline Jack Doohan in favor of Franco Colapinto before the season started. However, this did not happen, partly because Oakes had confidence in the rookie.

If the decision were up to the ones around Max Verstappen, it would be simple: the Dutchman should leave Red Bull Racing after this season. They consider the situation of the Austrian squad to be hopeless for this and the next season, as GPblog has learned.

There's no doubt about Red Bull's good intentions to make the RB21 a serious contender against the Mclarens, but there simply isn't any belief in their success. And will a team, that continues to miss the mark, be capable of building the best car with the new technical regulations coming in 2026?