As McLaren decided to save its sinking ship by performing a technical restructuring, Alpine resorted to taking inspiration from its F1 rival. While it is not as drastic as what Zak Brown and Co. are doing, it still is a necessary step taken to silence the critics and improve the performance. Will it boost Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly’s performance? Let’s find out what all was said.

Otmar Szafnauer and Co. have a big job on their hands after the flop performances since the start of the season. Laurent Rossi added to the already difficult task as he conveyed his expectations of finishing a minimum of P4 on the standings. Moreover, the Alpine CEO suggested that Szafnauer was brought in to steer the team in the right direction and that it is his responsibility to make sure that the team is performing well.

As Aston Martin went from being the 7th fastest to now the 2nd fastest team, Otmar Szafnauer looks to take a page out of Lawrence Stroll’s book in attempting to meet Rossi’s expectations. The Alpine TP explained how Aston Martin poached many Red Bull and Mercedes engineers. As he talks about the changes and effects of a rival’s Head of Department joining in, Szafnauer explains the effect of new personnel joining in. 

According to Motorsport.com, Otmar Szafnauer said, “Aston Martin has hired many, many of them from Red Bull Racing and Mercedes. He took not only Dan Fallows and Eric Blandin, whom everyone knew, but others. For example, Red Bull’s aerodynamics department consists of 50 people. The person who leads them has access to the knowledge of all their subordinates. But even if you have this person, you need a team of 50 to keep improving.”

Continuing about the engineers, Szafnauer revealed the expansion at Alpine and said, “We will speed up all processes. 38 people work in our Aerodynamic department and now we want to increase the number to 45. That means there’s space for seven or eight key aerodynamic engineers in Alpine. Some are stuck in the same position for a long time because their teams don’t have career opportunities. Finding a rising name and saying ‘We have the right position for you!’ if you can say, then people will probably move on to your team.”

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Poaching personnel is normal in F1 as engineers keep moving, looking for a better opportunities. That’s exactly what Szafnauer explained. However, that is not the only thing going on at Alpine, as speculation of signing a new driver gains traction. 

Carlos Sainz stipulated the ideal candidate as Alpine looks for a new driver. 

While Alpine did produce a miserable car for 2023, the drivers have not been great either. Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon crashed into each other at the Australian GP, losing the team massive points. As a result, Otmar Szafnauer needs to decide what is good for the team.

According to El Nacional, Alpine has already started looking for another driver as Carlos Sainz’s name pops up. Esteban Ocon is not considered being a natural leader like Alonso was, and Pierre Gasly is considered not as great as the hype around him expected him to be. While Carlos Sainz hasn’t been great ever since he joined Ferrari, he definitely is performing consistently and has not made many errors this season.

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What do you think of Otmar Szafnauer’s approach? Will it help the team in any which way?