Another name for the list of personnel that have been replaced in the hard-hit Alpine team in the last 12 months. As the ‘BBC‘ first reported on the last day of May, long-time Operations Director Rob White has to vacate his post after 20 years at Enstone.
According to the BBC report, White was fired, and the team was informed of this on Wednesday by team boss Bruno Famin. On Friday, Alpine commented on this in a brief statement: “As part of the team’s larger operational restructuring, we can confirm the departure of Rob White. The team thanks Rob for his efforts over a long career at Enstone and Viry-Chatillon, where he led the championship-winning projects of 2005 and 2006. We wish him all the best for the future.”
White, 58, can look back on a long and distinguished career in motorsport, which began in the late 1980s in the IndyCar division of the engine manufacturer Cosworth. In 2004, Renault recruited him as head of engines. In 2016, he moved from the engine factory in Viry, France, to the racing team in Enstone, Great Britain, where he was operations director for eight years.
White joins the ranks of senior executives who have been axed in recent months under the new leadership of motorsport and team boss Bruno Famin and Renault CEO Luca de Meo.
Long list of ex-Alpine personnel only gets longer
In less than twelve months, team boss Otmar Szafnauer, technical director Pat Fry, race director Alan Permane, director of racing expansion Davide Brivio, chief engineer Matt Harman, aero boss Dirk de Beer and long-standing technical advisor Bob Bell have left Alpine. Some voluntarily, others less so.
At the same time, the team experienced a disaster on the racetrack and is now trapped in the stragglers of Formula 1. The circumstances clearly underline the signal that Famin is aiming for a complete reset in Enstone and Viry and has no problem with clearing the decks in terms of personnel. He has also already landed a major signing – David Sanchez, formerly of Ferrari, will be Technical Director.
Other rumours about the future of the team persist. And about the drivers: Esteban Ocon is said to be seeking a change. On top of that, Famin threatened him with consequences after the internal collision with Pierre Gasly in Monaco. For F1 expert Christian Danner, a ban initiated by the team would be a perfectly justifiable reaction.