Not successful and too expensive: Renault CEO Luca de Meo explains why it makes sense for Alpine to continue in Formula 1 as a customer team without its own engine
Renault has decided to discontinue its Formula One engine project and will rely on Mercedes engines for the Alpine team in the future. This decision, which was only recently made official, caused a lot of excitement in Viry-Chatillon, where Renault’s Formula One engines have been manufactured since the 1970s.
Renault CEO Luca de Meo explains in an interview with the French newspaper L’Equipe that this step was necessary to rethink the brand’s Formula One project and make it successful again.
“I’m a manager. I run a publicly traded company,” explains the Frenchman. “And I have to rethink the Formula One project to finally win.”
“So I’m looking for shortcuts to make that happen. We’ve become invisible. Two more years like this and the project would collapse completely. We’ve been on a downward trend for three seasons. We needed to shake it all up. With some financial logic in mind,” said de Meo.
De Meo: We have to think about business
In the end, the numbers were the deciding factor. The enormous investment required to produce an engine makes no sense if a lower-cost customer unit can be installed that delivers just as much, if not more, power for significantly less investment.
“Real enthusiasts aren’t impressed by this calculation,” admits the Renault CEO. ‘I am.’ In this context, he also emphasizes that Viry, with its 340 employees in the Formula 1 division, has no chance of competing against Mercedes, which is estimated to employ 900 people.
“They have test stands that we don’t have,” de Meo continues. ‘The transition to the hybrid era required heavy investments that were underestimated at the time. Structurally, we work with three cylinders, while others have eight.’
That’s why Renault wanted to get out of Formula One four years ago. ”If we’re still in it, it’s because I saved the day.”
“But we don’t have the structure to be at the forefront of battery chemistry development, software management and energy recovery. It’s not just a matter of putting an engine on the test stand and saying, ‘Hey boss, I can do 415 kW!’,” the manager notes.
Your own F1 engine isn’t worth as much anymore
In addition, the value of Formula One as a marketing tool for engine manufacturers has changed. Winning on Sunday, selling on Monday no longer applies. People associate brands with different things today.
“Sponsors come for a team, not for an engine,” says de Meo. ”Partners sign with McLaren, not with Mercedes under the hood. The Formula 1 audience has changed. It has expanded to include young people and women. This new clientele interprets this sport differently.”
“We support a driver, a color, a brand. Not an engine. Alpine loses out on bonuses because of our position. Sponsors are rare. We have a hole. My shareholders can count. Alpine has to make money.”
Because its value will continue to rise in view of the boom in Formula 1, the Renault CEO is certain.
“I get calls from financiers every 15 days, eccentrics who want to get into Formula 1. They know it will cost a lot more after 2026.”
“If you get a billion pounds for the team today, they can sell it for double that in two years. There are a lot of speculators here. I have turned them down 50 times. A team will soon be worth between three and five billion dollars. I won’t sell, I’m not stupid,” says de Meo.
Even without its own engine, being in Formula One is “crucial” for the Alpine brand. “We belong to an elite club. This gives the brand credibility among car enthusiasts. We don’t need this money.”
