Formula 1 drivers are not ‘betting on’ £1.1bn team being quick for 2026 season

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Nobody on the F1 grid appears to have much faith in one team ahead of F1’s regulation changes in 2026, according to Joe Saward.

There could be major changes to the current pecking order when the sport overhauls its technical rules at the end of next season.

And Saward, speaking to The Missed Apex F1 podcast, says there are already doubts over how one team will fare.

Many of the changes will revolve around the power units, with the MGU-H set to be scrapped.

In moves towards a more environmentally responsible future, the teams will also use sustainable fuels and increase their reliance on electrical power.

The last time there was such a significant change to the engine rules, Mercedes became a dominant force.

Between 2014 and 2021, the Silver Arrows won eight consecutive constructors’ championships, largely at a canter.

It wasn’t until 2022, the beginning of the ground effect era, that Red Bull were able to definitively knock the Silver Arrows off their throne.

The Bulls enjoyed the most dominant season in F1 history last year with 21 wins from 22 races, and have also triumphed in two of the first three this term.

Little confidence in Alpine ahead of 2026

Saward says key figures on the F1 grid are deciding which teams are worth backing for 2026.

Lewis Hamilton has opted to ditch Mercedes for Ferrari, though some suspect Toto Wolff’s outfit will mount a resurgence.

One team ‘nobody is betting on’, however, is Alpine, who are the only ones using Renault power units.

• READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Alpine F1 Team from team principal to lineage

Saward said: “Lewis has bet on Ferrari. Other people are betting on Mercedes. Nobody is betting on Renault oddly enough.”

Valued at £1.1bn by Forbes magazine last year, Alpine currently sit bottom of the standings.

They are one of three teams, alongside Williams and Sauber, yet to score a point in 2024.

Will Esteban Ocon leave Alpine?

If the paddock aren’t expecting Alpine to take well to the new regulations, then it follows that their drivers may look elsewhere.

Both Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly are out of contract at the end of the current season.

Sky Sports F1’s David Croft has already suggested that they could seek a way out of the ailing French manufacturer.

Ocon knows there’s a vacancy at Mercedes thanks to Hamilton’s Ferrari move, and he has the advantage of past experience at Brackley.

The Frenchman was previously part of the team’s academy and served as their reserve driver in 2019.

There’s a possibility that Wolff could use him as a stop-gap as teenage sensation Andrea Kimi Antonelli readies himself at Williams.

Ocon, who won the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix, may have believed that Alpine were in for a bright future, but admits their woes this season have left him with the ‘worst feeling’.

There are even some individuals in the pit lane mocking Bruno Famin’s team for the failure of their ‘100-race project’.

For his part, Gasly says he’s keen to continue driving for a works team beyond the end of this season.