Alpine has confirmed Oliver Oakes as the successor to Bruno Famin: The Briton becomes the second youngest team principal in Formula 1 history
Alpine has found a successor to outgoing team principal Bruno Famin and, as expected, has unveiled Oliver Oakes as the new man in charge of the French racing team. The team confirmed the appointment of Oakes on Wednesday afternoon, who will take over from Famin after the summer break.
“I am very grateful to Luca de Meo and Flavio Briatore for the opportunity to lead the Alpine team back to competitiveness,” said the Briton. “The team has talented people and excellent resources at its core and I am confident that we can achieve a lot together this season and in the longer term. I’m looking forward to getting started after the summer break.”
At 36, Oakes will be the second youngest team principal in Formula 1 history, but still has a wealth of experience in running a race team.
In 2015, he founded Team Hitech, which currently competes in Formula 2 and Formula 3. Now he is stepping up to become a team principal in Formula 1, where he has the difficult task of leading Alpine back into calmer waters.
“It is a pleasure to welcome Oli to the team and make him one of the youngest team principals this sport has ever seen,” says Renault CEO Luca de Meo.
“This team is being built for future success and this is underlined by the appointment of Oli in a senior role. We look forward to harnessing his enthusiasm, energy and passion for racing and implementing this mindset throughout the team,” said the Italian.
The new special advisor Flavio Briatore also has words of praise for the Englishman on his arrival: “Oli is highly talented and has a wealth of leadership qualities and successes in racing,” he says.
“His move into this role is a great example of the strength and belief we have in our team and in young, up-and-coming people, and I look forward to working closely with him as we focus together on moving up the grid and winning races.”
Famin, meanwhile, returns to his role as head of the Viry-Chatillon plant and will also continue to be responsible for all other Renault Group motorsport activities. He took over the role of Formula 1 Team Principal from Otmar Szafnauer a year ago.
