Szafnauer most recently worked as team principal for the Alpine F1 Team, exiting the team in the summer break of 2023.
The Romanian-American departed the Enstone operation after the Belgian Grand Prix of that year, citing a disagreement with upper management about a fundamental culture change in the team.
“They wanted a corporate culture change in a different manner, to get rid of some people that were doing a good job that had been there for a long time,” Szafnauer told F1.com in 2024.
“My thought was, well, if you get rid of people that do a good job then the message you send is ‘do a good job, get fired’, and that’s not the culture that you really want.
“I was asked, and I said no. It’s not who I am.”
Szafnauer was at the centre of the controversy surrounding Oscar Piastri’s messy departure from Alpine’s junior program in 2022.
The Australian had been announced as the replacement for Fernando Alonso, before promptly taking to social media to deny the news, claiming the announcement was made without his permission.
Piastri instead signed for McLaren, prompting a lengthy legal battle between the two teams.
Szafnauer denied any involvement in the controversy, casting blame on senior team management.
“I had absolutely nothing to do with not signing Oscar Piastri correctly. That mistake was made in November [2021] – I started in March [2022],” Szafnauer told the High Performance Podcast.
“In November, the Piastri contract was meant to be signed – it was never signed. I started March, I had no idea. They didn’t submit the CRB [Contract Recognition Board] documents correctly and never signed a contract with him.”
The 18 month stint at Alpine followed a lengthy appointment at Aston Martin, overseeing the team’s climb through the midfield as Force India, and later Racing Point.
Sznafnauer’s appointment comes at somewhat of a lean period of performance for VAR in both Formula 2 and Formula 3.
Utilising over 30 years of motorsport experience, the appointment will be key to the progression of the team into the future.
“Van Amersfoort Racing has a strong reputation for developing talent and competing at a high level across multiple categories,” said Szafnauer.
“I look forward to working closely with the leadership team and the wider organisation to guide the next phase of the team’s development.”
VAR’s recent seasons have included a brief F3 stint for current Super2 driver Tommy Smith, and a two-race Formula Regional European Championship campaign for former S5000 champion Joey Mawson.
The team’s Formula 3 fortunes have been on the rise, highlighted by a fifth place finish in the 2025 Constructor’s Championship standings.
VAR will be on the grid this weekend at Albert Park with two drivers in Formula 2 and three in Formula 3 for the Australian Grand Prix.
