Alpine announce departure of Marcin Budkowski

The French team and Budkowski mutually part ways ahead of the 2022 season.

French Formula One team Alpine have announced that their Executive Director Marcin Budkowski has left the team.

Budkowski joined the team in 2018 from the FIA, and after former Team Principal Cyril Abiteboul’s departure at the start of the previous season, Alpine had announced that Budkowski along with Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi and Davide Brivio will form a leadership group.

Speaking about Budkowski’s departure, Laurent Rossi, commented:

“I would like to thank Marcin Budkowski for his commitment and contribution to the team’s results over the last four years.

“The team is fully focused on getting the car ready for the first race in Bahrain and deliver a step beyond in performance.”

Under Budkowski’s partnership, Alpine scored their maiden victory in Hungary through Esteban Ocon and finished the year a strong fifth in the Constructors’ Championship.

On leaving the team, Budkowski stated:

“I truly enjoyed being part of the leadership team of Renault then Alpine F1 Team, working with such a talented and dedicated group of people.

“I will be watching the team’s progress fondly in the seasons to come.”

Budkowski worked at Prost, Ferrari and headed the aerodynamics department at McLaren before joining the FIA in 2014. In 2015, he was appointed as the Technical and Sporting Co-ordinator and later the Head of the Technical Department in 2017. He joined Renault in 2018, where he initially oversaw the expansion of the team’s technical prowess and development of the new facilities. He later moved onto the role of overseeing the team’s engine programme. It was reported that Budkowski would replace Cyril Abiteboul as Team Principal, but he was instead given the role of Executive Director, while Davide Brivio became Racing Director.

Although Alpine haven’t announced a successor to Budkowski, the team have said that Rossi will ‘temporarily’ run the operations so that everyone gets ready for the upcoming season.

It is rumored, though, that former Aston Martin boss Otmar Szafnauer is the likely candidate to replace Budkowski. Szafnauer departed his role as Team Principal with Aston Martin earlier this year. Budkowski might also replace Szafnauer at Aston Martin, which would see the two swap roles.