autoevolution
 

Alain Prost Might Replace Briatore at Renault

It shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that Flavio Briatore may be forced into an early retirement from the sport of Formula One should the World Motor Sport Council decide Renault did, in fact, fix the results of the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. He and team's head of engineering Pat Symonds are in the same boat, as they are both accused of telling Nelson Piquet Jr. to crash out of the race at a particular time in order to facilitate Fernando Alonso's win.

While the speculations on the crash-gate scandal keep on making the headlines lately – all of them being based on leaked information from the Renault dossier – Renault seems to have already considered a back-up plan in case things won't exactly work out.

As suggested by the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport, it seems the French manufacturer is seriously thinking of replacing Briatore with quadruple Formula One champion Alain Prost for the managing job of the Enstone based team. That will happen only if Briatore & Co will be found guilty as charged by the FIA.

Previously linked with an adjacent role within Jean Todt's team for the FIA presidency, Prost is no stranger from F1 management. Soon after ending his F1 career in 1993, the Frenchman started his own team in the series, renaming the old Ligier team into Prost Grand Prix – after previously purchasing from Flavio Briatore.

During his years as team boss, Prost opted for Peugeot engines in his team's first 3 seasons, after which he signed an engine-supply deal with Ferrari. Prost Grand Prix eventually ran out of money before the 2002 season and the Frenchman had to close down his business.

Another important figure linked with Briatore's job at Renault is Prodrive's boss David Richards, although it's hard to believe the Welshman will switch focus from his Aston Martin to returning to Formula One. If Renault will nonetheless pursue him for the job, it would be the second time Richards would replace Briatore as team principal, following the Benetton episode in 1997.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories