Mattia Binotto, early return to F1? Alpine calls him
Removal from the slopes may end sooner than expected.
Mattia Binotto in Formula 1 as early as 2023, but in Alpine. That’s what the French press suggests, according to which the former Ferrari team principal could be back operating at the Circus racetracks even before the 12-month suspension from operations that has elapsed since his farewell to the Cavallino comes to an end.
According to what ‘L’Auto-Journal’ says, in fact, Binotto could begin his activities at Alpine as early as next September. The transalpine team is in fact undergoing a phase of very profound changes, with Otmar Szafnauer removed from the role of team principal, the farewells of Pat Fry and Alan Permane on the technical front, and Philippe Krief the new managing director in place of Laurent Rossi.
Currently Alpine’s interim team principal is Bruno Famin, but his experience is set to end fairly soon. In fact, the role should be taken over by Mattia Binotto as early as a few weeks after the Formula 1 championship resumes. The former Ferrari man, after all, has already been seen in the paddock for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone and in the pits during Pirelli’s tests at Spa-Francorchamps.
According to reports in the transalpine press, Binotto will be able to interrupt his gardening period (i.e., stop from Formula 1 activity) thanks to an agreement that all the parties involved are tightening in recent weeks. In fact, his farewell to Ferrari dates back to December 2022, and without these negotiations he would have no way of getting back to work until 12 months after his previous employment ends.
In Alpine, his duties will be team principal, but it is not ruled out that Binotto could also return to take charge of the French team’s engine. This, after all, had also been his job at Ferrari between 1995 and 2016, albeit in different roles over the years and decades. The goal would be to boost the performance of a currently underperforming powertrain compared to Honda, Mercedes, and Ferrari.
