While initial rumors posited that Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff could purchase 24% of the Alpine F1 Team, paddock chatter has quickly shifted to Mercedes itself being a potential bidder. Flavio Briatore, Alpine’s de facto team boss, confirmed Mercedes’ interest in buying the stake. He also guaranteed that Mercedes would have no impact on the team’s decision-making. However, I wouldn’t trust someone who was once banned from Formula 1 for life.
It’s important to note that the 24% stake for sale is currently controlled by Otro Capital. The venture capital firm’s $233 million acquisition in 2023 raised eyebrows because it made several celebrities into minority F1 team owners. Movie star Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenny of “Always Sunny In Philadelphia” fame, and former world number one golfer Rory McIlroy were all investors with the firm. Otro is now looking to make a profitable exit with no way for Alpine to block a sale to a rival entity. When asked about the potential influence that Mercedes could exert, Briatore told Autosport:
“I think so. Red Bull has been a pioneer already in the last 10 years or 15 years [having two teams in F1]. And like I tell you, Mercedes is looking to buy Otro’s 24%. Normally in one company, 75% decide and 25% is the passenger. And this is what is the reality.”
Four seats are always better than two
There are plenty of benefits for an automaker to control two teams in F1. First, the two-team entity would control two votes in the championship’s decision-making body, the F1 Commission. Second, it can spread the research and development costs across two teams. While it’s illegal to race a customer chassis in F1, technical expertise and engine development costs can be shared.
The third benefit is the one most apparent to fans with Red Bull’s two teams: Red Bull Racing and Visa Cash App Racing Bulls. The energy drink giant has four seats to shift drivers between. It was ultimately the deciding factor in the infamous 2014 bidding war for a then-16-year-old Max Verstappen. Mercedes wanted to sign the Dutch prodigy but couldn’t guarantee him an F1 race seat for the following season. Red Bull could make that promise with a place at Toro Rosso.
Typically, Mercedes has to buy a seat at another team to get a junior driver and an early promotion into F1. Kimi Antonelli seems destined to land at Williams like George Russell before him. However, Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari allowed Toto Wolff to slot the young Italian directly into the factory team. An in-house junior team would simply the Mercedes driver pipeline.
