Alpine team principal Oliver Oakes “won’t accept finishing at the back” in 2025 F1 season. Alpine team principal Oliver Oakes is aware of the challenges in 2025 F1 season.

Alpine aims to climb up

After a terrible start to 2024, Alpine has embarked on a growth path that led them to secure sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship. This result, boosted by the unexpected success in Interlagos, has given the Enstone team great confidence ahead of the 2025 World Championship.

The season starting in Melbourne will likely be a transitional one for the French team, as they await Mercedes‘ arrival as a supplier of power units. A potential source of instability could come from the drivers: one of them – Jack Doohan – is already under pressure, and it’s possible he could be replaced during the season by new signing Franco Colapinto.

Oliver Oakes’ comments

The allocation of resources for 2025 and 2026 and the driver issue could distract the team. Team principal Oliver Oakes is aware of this but does not want any excuses: “We won’t accept finishing at the back of the grid; we want to be in the midfield package and, in the end, we want to be at the front of the grid,” he told PlanetF1. “This doesn’t happen overnight; it takes time, and it’s necessary to take things step by step: the first step was to provide stability and leadership, the second was to direct it in the right way in terms of values and work culture, and then, of course, strategic choices, whether it’s about drivers or power units.”

“2025 will likely be one of the most challenging years in F1. We want to make a lot of improvements, but we’re a bit limited by the budget cap and the 2026 perspective,” he added. “A team principal has to decide if they want to sacrifice 2025, but I don’t think anyone will do that, and we have no intention of doing so, because we’re here to race. If you do it, it’s because you’re not finding the performance.” – the Alpine team boss concluded.