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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff could buy a stake in the Alpine Formula 1 team, according to a report. This has predictably attracted the attention of rivals.
It emerged on Monday that Wolff is negotiating with Otro Capital, who currently own a 24% share of Alpine. They have also been speaking to Red Bull boss Christian Horner, Wolff’s sporting nemesis.
Alpine relinquished their status as a works team at the end of last year when they closed down their F1 power unit division. They are now one of three Mercedes engine customers.
Who is the best person to run Alpine in Formula 1: Christian Horner, Toto Wolff or Flavio Briatore?
Toto Wolff would not be allowed to turn Alpine into another Racing Bulls
There’s now a genuine possibility that Mercedes will partly own two F1 teams. As reported by Motorsport Netherlands, their competitors are ‘closely monitoring developments’.
Ownership of Mercedes is currently split between the German car manufacturer, chemical company INEOS (both 33%), Wolff (28%) and Crowdstrike CEO George Kurtz (5%).
During his early years as the Mercedes boss, Wolff retained a stake in the Williams team, but he sold his remaining shares in 2016.
Red Bull have owned the Racing Bulls F1 team for over 20 years after buying Minardi in 2005. This arrangement has raised concerns about sporting integrity, with McLaren CEO Zak Brown the leading critic.
What are your thoughts on Red Bull’s relationship with Racing Bulls?
However, Alpine will not become Racing Bulls 2.0 even if Wolff’s talks are successful. That’s because Renault would retain their 76% majority shareholding.
There have long been rumours that Renault want to sell Alpine, but the French company themselves have always denied this. As long as they are around, they would not allow Wolff to make the Enstone outfit a B-team.
Wolff and Mercedes would clearly have an influence and may be able to place a young driver in one of the seats, but the final decision would rest with Renault.
What now for Christian Horner as Toto Wolff emerges as Alpine challenger?
Wolff has been accused of ‘pettiness’ after rivalling Horner, but there is no way he would take on such a significant business venture purely in the interests of one-upmanship.
Horner is now ‘most likely’ to invest in Aston Martin, who are unquestionably F1’s crisis team right now. Lawrence Stroll may view the Briton as a potential saviour, though it’s unclear where he would sit in the hierarchy relative to Adrian Newey.
It recently emerged that Aston Martin offered Horner a position already, but those talks could now intensify. Part-ownership is likely to be non-negotiable for the 52-year-old.
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