Alpine is the story of the week. A record fashion deal worth upwards of $150 million, a bitterly contested ownership stake, and the sport’s most polarising returning figure all converged on the team at the same time.
Meanwhile, Ferrari’s electric car has triggered an identity crisis that cuts closer to Formula 1 than anyone in the paddock would like to admit, and Red Bull is pushing their greatest ever driver for an answer he is not yet willing to give.
Here’s the latest
Christian Horner has held more serious discussions with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD about jointly establishing a 12th Formula 1 team, according to reporting from PlanetF1 this week. The talks took shape after Horner spent time at a BYD activation event at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this month, where he met the company’s executive vice president Stella Li.
BYD is the world’s leading electric vehicle brand by sales volume, with a market valuation of around $125 billion. Li had already signalled publicly that BYD was in discussions with Formula 1’s management about a potential entry, and BYD’s preference, according to sources, is to establish a brand new team rather than acquire a stake in an existing operation, which would mean applying for a 12th grid slot, a process that took years in the case of Cadillac.
Horner’s non-compete agreement from his Red Bull exit expired this month, meaning he is now legally free to join or establish a team. He has made clear he wants full operational control rather than a minority stake, and a green-field project would give him exactly that.
One significant complication shadows the whole discussion though. Formula 1 is actively pursuing a return to V8 engines with minimal electric power for 2030 or 2031, a direction that would significantly undermine the commercial rationale for a company whose entire brand identity is built around electrification to enter the sport.
(Source: PlanetF1)
Alpine confirmed that Gucci will replace BWT as its title sponsor from the 2027 season. It is the first time in Formula 1 history that a luxury fashion house has held a title partnership at a team. The deal is estimated to be worth upwards of $150 million and will see the team renamed the Gucci Racing Alpine Formula One Team.
Gucci has created a new commercial platform called Gucci Racing to sit alongside the partnership, described as built around the values of performance, precision and excellence. The brand’s black and gold colours and its iconic double-G logo will replace the BWT pink that has defined the Alpine cars since 2022. Team chief executive Philippe Krief confirmed there will also be “a little blue” to retain some continuity with Alpine’s identity.
The arrangement goes significantly further than livery. Gucci intends to dress Alpine’s mechanics and drivers in bespoke performance clothing designed for garage use, with artistic director Demna personally involved in creating the garments. The fashion house has also promised a new global product line connected to its F1 involvement.
Team advisor Flavio Briatore drew a parallel with Benetton in the 1990s, noting that this same Enstone team had already shown that fashion and winning in Formula 1 can go hand in hand. The announcement follows F1’s 10-year LVMH deal signed last year and adds Gucci alongside Louis Vuitton as the second major fashion house embedded in the sport at partnership level.
(Source: GPBlog)
Motor Sport Magazine published a sharp piece of analysis this week connecting the furious reaction to Ferrari’s first electric car, the Luce, with a tension that Formula 1 is navigating at the same time.
The Luce was unveiled in Rome at a price of around £477,000. Its reception was brutal. Former Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo said he hoped the company would remove the Prancing Horse badge from the car. Italy’s deputy prime minister posted on social media that it “looks anything but a car from the Prancing Horse.” Ferrari’s stock fell more than 8 per cent the day after the reveal.
Motor Sport magazine’s argument was that the backlash is not really about the car itself but about identity: what a name is supposed to represent and who gets to decide when that changes. It drew an explicit parallel with Formula 1’s current situation. The sport’s 2026 regulations introduced a near 50-50 split between combustion and electrical power, a change that has attracted almost exactly the same kind of pushback from drivers and fans as the Luce has from Ferrari’s customer base.
The piece cited Domenicali’s own acknowledgement that stakeholders are now in “less of a corner” on engine direction, and noted that Ben Sulayem’s public commitment to a V8 return reflects the same pressure Ferrari is now under with the Luce. The lesson proposed: changing the technology is manageable; losing the audience’s sense of what the thing fundamentally is, is not.
(Source: Motor Sport Magazine)
Mercedes has ended its pursuit of the 24 per cent Alpine shareholding held by American investment group Otro Capital. According to The Race, bids were submitted this week and Mercedes concluded that the asking price was simply higher than the team’s value justified.
Otro Capital, which purchased its stake for around $230 million in 2023, is understood to be seeking approximately $720 million for the same holding, implying an overall team valuation of around $3 billion. Mercedes assessed that figure as too high and stepped back rather than increase its offer.
The withdrawal hands Christian Horner a clearer path. He has been pursuing the same stake as his preferred route into F1. Mercedes’s interest had been interpreted by some in the paddock as a deliberate blocking move, though Mercedes publicly rejected that framing. McLaren chief executive Zak Brown had separately written to the governing body urging it to prevent cross-ownership arrangements between competing teams.
Alpine’s parent company Renault holds a veto over any Otro sale until September 2026, after which Otro can sell to any buyer without requiring approval. Alpine chief executive Philippe Krief confirmed this week that Renault will keep its 76 per cent majority regardless of the outcome. Briatore’s public remarks about needing experienced senior figures have been widely understood as a quiet endorsement of Horner’s suitability, though no deal is confirmed.
(Source: The Race)
Red Bull has issued an informal ultimatum to Max Verstappen over his future, according to reporting from Austrian outlet OE24 cited by GPFans this week. The team is pressing the four-time world champion for a decision before the summer break, with an exit clause in his contract understood to become active from July.
Verstappen has been openly critical of the 2026 regulations throughout the season, describing the cars as resembling “Mario Kart” and “Formula E on steroids.” Combined with Red Bull’s difficult start to the new era, those frustrations have kept the question of his future alive all season. He is currently seventh in the championship standings, without a podium in the 2026 season so far.
At Red Bull itself, the situation is compounded by a significant loss of senior figures over the past two years. Verstappen’s closest remaining ally at the team, race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, is understood to be departing for McLaren as Chief Racing Officer no later than 2028. The report cites growing internal tension as the team tries to plan for a future that may or may not include its defining driver.
Verstappen has said publicly that he is “in no rush” but wants to stay associated with Red Bull long-term if circumstances allow. Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren are all understood to be monitoring the situation closely.
(Source: GPFans)
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