Flavio Briatore, an executive advisor for the Alpine Formula 1 team, has dismissed suggestions that the resignation of team principal Oliver Oakes stemmed from a disagreement between the two.
Alpine announced Oakes` departure on Tuesday evening after he had held the role for only 10 months. Briatore, known for guiding Benetton and Renault to multiple F1 world championships in the 1990s and 2000s, has now taken over Oakes` duties.
Oakes` resignation occurred shortly before the team confirmed on Wednesday morning that driver Jack Doohan would be replaced by Franco Colapinto. This timing led to speculation that the two events were linked.
However, Briatore issued a statement via Instagram on Wednesday afternoon, asserting that his relationship with Oakes remains strong and that the 37-year-old`s decision to leave was for “personal reasons”.
A lot has been said in the past 24 hours, incorrectly associating the decision of Oli resigning to an alleged disagreement, or that we shared different views. This is completely false and far from the truth,
Me and Oli have a very good relationship and had long-term ambitions to drive this team forward together.
We accept Oli`s request to resign and have therefore accepted his resignation.
The reasons are not related to the team and are of a personal nature.
I will continue to be more and more involved with the team, together with the strong management we already have in place.
We will work hard on improving our position this season and preparing for 2026.
Briatore`s statement was co-posted by Alpine`s official Instagram account.
Oakes also provided a statement corroborating Briatore`s account, saying:
It`s been a privilege to lead everyone at Enstone, what a team, what a place.
It is a personal decision for me to step down. Flavio has been like a father to me, nothing but supportive since I took the role, as well as giving me the opportunity.
Everyone is in place for 2026 and where this dream deserves to be. I believe in Enstone.
Oliver Oakes founded Hitech Grand Prix in 2015 and was the 2005 karting world champion. He became Alpine team principal in August 2024 and oversaw a strong double podium result in Brazil later that year.
Flavio Briatore, 75, is a prominent figure in F1 management, known for his championship successes with Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso. He was involved in the controversial 2008 `Crashgate` incident, receiving a ban that was later overturned by a French court. He returned to Alpine as executive advisor in May 2024.
