Alpine's executive advisor Flavio Briatore has broken his silence on one of the biggest ownership stories in the Formula 1 paddock, confirming that Mercedes is part of active negotiations for a 24 per cent stake in the Enstone-based team.
Speaking after a miserable Australian Grand Prix where Alpine salvaged just a single point through Pierre Gasly, Briatore was unusually candid about the parallel business conversations playing out behind the scenes. The stake in question is held by an American investment fund, not by Alpine's Renault parent, and Briatore made clear the deal is advancing on multiple fronts.
"I know there's negotiation from Mercedes. We see, in this moment, we have three or four potential buyers," Briatore told reporters. "We're talking about the share — nothing to do with [the team itself]. It's the share held by this H Fund, an American fund. They want to sell the 24 per cent, and there are a few candidates ready to do the deal."
The admission is significant. Mercedes, already entrenched as one of the sport's dominant forces in the early 2026 season, would gain a commercial foothold inside a direct rival if the deal completes. Whether that represents a pure financial play from Stuttgart or a more strategic move remains the subject of paddock speculation.
Briatore also offered an unusually frank assessment of where Alpine realistically sits in the pecking order under the new regulations. After Melbourne, where the team struggled with a car Briatore openly described as flawed, he targeted a mid-pack recovery rather than any immediate leap toward the front.
"We're looking to be P7, P8 — this range of competition," he said. "We have the four top teams, and after that is all the rest. So fighting to be in front of all the rest."
Briatore admitted the gap to Mercedes in particular feels daunting, comparing the current dynamic to Red Bull's prolonged era of dominance. "For many years it was Red Bull one, one, first. We need to learn and try to do better. Congratulations, honestly, [they've] done a better job than us. That's the reality — but it's happened already with Red Bull for many years, and now it's happened with Mercedes."
Across the paddock, Audi team principal Jonathan Wheatley reacted to the Mercedes–Alpine chatter with evident amusement, arguing that F1's ownership governance would handle any concerns.
"The sport has very clear governance," Wheatley said. "I don't see any conflicts of interest or concerns on our side at all, to be honest. Just watching it, eating the popcorn, and enjoying the show."
Whether the deal closes with Mercedes or one of the other bidders, a 24 per cent non-controlling stake would still sit below the 25 per cent threshold Briatore described as the cut-off between meaningful influence and simply being a "passenger" in a team's decision-making. But in a season already dominated by talk of ownership shuffles — from Audi's takeover to Cadillac's incoming 11th team — a new commercial link between Mercedes and a rival constructor would add another layer to an already crowded political picture.
For now, Briatore insists Alpine's focus remains on fixing the car. The politics, by his own admission, are changing every day.
Source: youtube.com