Renault must reject Toto Wolff and Christian Horner as perfect buyer for £443m Alpine stake clear

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Renault will have to consider an option that hasn’t been floated yet when deciding on the sale of the 24% stake in Alpine, currently held by Otro Capital.

Toto Wolff and Mercedes hijacked Christian Horner’s Alpine bid earlier this year, putting their name in the hat to acquire the 24% minority stake.

Otro Capital currently owns this equity, having purchased it in December of 2023. But as bidders start to line up, a decision is expected to be made soon.

Flavio Briatore confirms Mercedes’ interest in buying a stake in Alpine

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Amid concerns about the nature of the sale, Alpine confirmed Mercedes wouldn’t control the team should any sale go through.

But the actual best option for Renault, who own the majority shares and control over the minority stake, would be Alpine themselves.

READ MORE: Zak Brown suggests Mercedes buying shares in Alpine will quickly ‘turn fans off’ Formula 1

Alpine’s strong start to the 2026 season could allow them to buy back shares from Renault

To start this season, Alpine have earned 23 points, good enough for fifth place in the standings behind the heavy hitters – Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, and Red Bull.

This is the best possible start to the season for them, as they find themselves with the ‘best of the rest’ title they’ve been fighting for in the last few years.

And these strong performances have not gone unnoticed. It was reported by GPBlog recently that Italian fashion giants Gucci are interested in becoming the name sponsor for Alpine, with BWT’s agreement to expire at the end of this year.

Gucci are one of the most lucrative brands in the world today, and one can imagine they can invest a great deal of money into the team going forward.

It’s a safe bet to imagine that Alpine’s strong start to 2026 has helped them attract some big-name investors, which could give them a massive influx of cash.

It is possible that Alpine use this fresh investment to purchase the 24% minority stake, currently valued at £443 million, presumably by leveraging their cash flow against the future.

Renault could be tempted to sell the stake to Alpine over Mercedes or Christian Horner’s consortium, as it would lead to far fewer complications for them in the sale process and possible handover.

Furthermore, both Mercedes and Horner’s groups are likely to try to wrestle some control away from Renault, which Alpine wouldn’t try, at least not in the early stages of their renewed partnership.

Not to mention, there is a concern that the FIA could block Mercedes from buying Alpine, even if they guarantee not to have any control over day-to-day operations.

READ MORE: Toto Wolff adamant that Mercedes won’t turn Alpine into their ‘junior team’

Who is the best person to run Alpine in Formula 1: Christian Horner, Toto Wolff or Flavio Briatore?

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Renault must be very careful with their sale decision

Everyone in the top brass of Renault must understand just how important it is that they get the sale decision absolutely correct.

While there have been suggestions that Renault just want the right price and aren’t concerned about the aftermath of the sale, that mindset is incredibly reckless.

For Renault, maximising shareholder value and profit cannot be the only factor to consider. Given their investment in Alpine, they should also treat this as an opportunity to secure their future assets.

And on top of that, whoever they approve the sale of the minority stake to effectively becomes their business partner until they decide to sell their own 76% stake in Alpine.

So Renault must be careful and ensure that they make the best business decision, not just in terms of profit, but their future as a stakeholder in Alpine.