Alpine is owned by Renault and represents the French marque on the F1 grid after the team was rebranded from the factory name for 2021.
However, it’s been a turbulent period for the Enstone operation with a revolving door of departures stemming back to Daniel Ricciardo and Cyril Abiteboul at the end of 2020.
Esteban Ocon won the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix, and there were flashes of competitiveness in the early part of 2023, but this season has been disastrous.
After eight races, Alpine has amassed just two points while generating headlines for the wrong reasons.
That included at the Monaco Grand Prix, when Ocon collided with Pierre Gasly, for which he will serve a five-place grid penalty in Canada this weekend.
Meanwhile, it has been speculated that the Enstone operation is for sale as Renault looks to cut its losses.
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Most recently that has seen the squad’s former team principal, Flavio Briatore, linked with a return in a consultant role.
Former Haas boss Guenther Steiner has also been linked to the squad.
It’s even been suggested the team could be a target for Andretti Global
“I want to make this very clear. There is no way we are going to give up,” asserted de Meo in an interview with AutoCar.
“It’s not my style. We will not sell even a part of this thing.
“We don’t need the money. I’ve had people making offers left and right, then talking in the press about it.
“But we’re not interested. It would be stupid and I won’t do it.”
Given the admission that the squad has “screwed up” this year, the immediate challenge is to reverse the team’s fortunes for 2025.
However, de Meo concedes it may not be possible in such a short time frame, and hints that the introduction of new rules offer the best opportunity.
“For this year and 2025, we will try with the current set-up, then push to get things right for the next cycle,” he said.
“That’s the challenge. But we will do everything necessary to be a competitive team.
“I expect a much better performance from the team,” he added.
“We are not here to be P16. We should be in the mix as often as possible. Sometimes you’re second, sometimes you’re fifth, but that should be our level.”
Part of the issue is the Renault power unit.
The French manufacturer proved a force to be reckoned with prior to the introduction of hybrids in 2014.
However it was Mercedes that was fastest out of the blocks while Renault was overhauled by Honda – prompting Red Bull Racing to switch its allegiance.
Even now, the power unit is regarded as the least preferable of the four options available.
“When we began the hybrid era [in 2014], our engine didn’t perform,” de Meo conceded.
“We had been world champions with Red Bull but with hybrid, things went wrong. Even the engine we developed in 2021 had a 0.2sec to 0.5sec disadvantage every lap.
“And this year we’ve screwed up with the car. If you combine everything, we’re up to 1.5sec from where we need to be.”
De Meo believes that there are three qualities the team needs to recover from that position.
“The first is a quality team of top-notch people,” he began.
“The second is racing rage, an obsession to win. The third is collaboration and trust throughout the team, a spirit of cooperation that makes things seem easier.
“Alpine should be one of the teams in F1 with the broadest shoulders, because it has the backing of the Renault Group,” he added.
“I don’t think we deserve to be a top team at present, but we’re not in F1 to be tourists so we need to work hard.
“Sure, we’ve made mistakes. It happens. But I think we’re right to put F1 at the core of Alpine, and to paint the car blue to represent a distinctive automotive culture.
“This brand is totally legitimate because it was always in competition. But it can do much better, and I don’t want to miss the opportunity.”
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