Renault had already confirmed the closure of its Viry Chatillon factory and would focus its attention on other projects in motorsport.

The consensus is that Renault currently has the slowest powerplant in F1, as is clearly evidenced by Alpine’s dramatic drop in performance in 2024. The team was second in the constructors’ championship after 20 Grands Prix, with just 16 points. collected during this race. time.

Alpine climbed to sixth place in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after an incredible double podium, with Esteban Ocon finish second and Pierre Gasly third. The Enstone team are three points ahead of Haas and five ahead of RB with three races remaining.

Mercedes 2026 engine will be ‘very competitive’ according to ‘whispers’ around the paddock

Sao Paulo could well be a one-off result for Alpine this season and even in 2025, with debate over whether the team made the right choice in partnering with Mercedes. Based on the “whispers” Nate Saunders has heard, that may be the case.

LEARN MORE: Everything we know about Alpine’s Mercedes powertrain deal after scrapping their factory engine division

The deal was met with disapproval from Alpine staff, with several protests organized after Renault announced it would close its Viry plant. Flavio Briatore ‘met resistance’ from Enstone factory as some staff members do not agree with the decision.

The idea seems to be to reduce costs and hopefully be competitive with Mercedes engines. According to Saunders via ESPN’s Unlapped podcast, this is precisely what many expect the German manufacturers’ units to be, giving a much-needed boost to Alpine.

“They (Alpine) have really gone through difficult times and this podium has come at the perfect time because there is a lot of pessimism around the team, it has been going on for a long, long time,” he said.

“Longer term, I don’t know if there’s as much optimism, but I think they’re turning a corner now. The road to competitiveness will be long, but that’s what it’s all about.

“That’s Mercedes’ goal, and all the whispers I’ve heard is that everyone thinks Mercedes is at least going to be very competitive with this new engine formula in 2026, so it’s not not a bad thing to put this in your car and If you have the best engine, chances are you can at least challenge for podiums.

Could Alpine’s deal with Mercedes lead to a possible sale?

Alpine’s transition to a customer team has put its future in doubt, leaving many to speculate whether the team could be sold to new investors or another entry.

Renault CEO Luca de Meo has repeatedly stressed that the team is not for sale, but would be the most lucrative option for an aspiring team to take over from 2026 onwards.

New Concorde Agreement could make Alpine more valuable with their Mercedes deal and that this will make it more difficult for newcomers to enter as a separate entity. Therefore, taking over the Enstone team could be the best option instead of trying to become the 11th team on the grid.

Andretti could be interested in a deal, with FOM pushing back his bid to join the sport for 2025 and 2026. Alpine could become Hitech-Mercedes if their team leader Olivier Oakeswho founded the junior formulas team, can arrange an agreement.

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