ALPINE MAY GET A NEW NAME IN 2027 DUE TO A MEGA DEAL WITH GUCCI

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The Alpine Formula 1 team will likely get a new name starting from the 2027 season. GPblog understands that luxury brand Gucci is the intended new title sponsor of the French team. The new name would then be Gucci Alpine Formula One Team.

BWT Alpine Formula One Team is currently the official and full name of the team of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto. BWT is expected to end its title sponsorship of the French outfit after the current season, which opens the door for a new naming partner.

That partner appears to be Gucci, part of the luxury group Kering. Since mid-last year, Luca de Meo has been the CEO of Kering. De Meo was for many years the CEO of Renault and a driving force behind the Formula 1 team, so the connection is quickly made.

Gucci is one of the largest luxury brands in the world. With the naming sponsorship of Alpine, the company would enter the world of glitz and glamour, perfectly matching the image Gucci aims to project. Reportedly, Gucci wants to leverage Formula 1—especially in the United States and Europe—to capitalize on the increasingly likely partnership with Alpine for further growth.

It is unknown how much Gucci is willing to spend for Alpine’s title sponsorship. In any case, such a major sponsorship would bring the French team tens of millions.

Alpine’s response to a possible deal with Gucci

GPblog asked Alpine about the collaboration with Gucci. The team responded with the following statement: "Alpine Formula One Team is constantly looking for new partnership opportunities and in contact with a wide range of brands and companies as potential partners. The discussions are however always kept confidential and they are disclosed only when confirmed and agreed by all parties."

Colapinto wows Buenos Aires crowd

Meanwhile, Colapinto says Argentina "deserves to have a race again" after the Alpine driver completed a show run on the streets of Buenos Aires in front of over half a million people.

The 22-year-old, himself from the Buenos Aires city of Pilar, performed his show run around a 2km course in the Palermo neighbourhood, near the capital's Monumento de Los Españoles, in a 2012 Lotus E20. The car was donning the pink and blue livery Alpine have had since its rebranding from Renault in 2021.

- Ludo van Denderen

ALPINE F1 TEAM: RENAULT WON'T SELL 'FAMILY JEWEL' - LUCA DE MEO

Luca de Meo has said Alpine is not for sale. Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

 Renault chief executive Luca de Meo has said their "family jewel" Alpine Formula 1 team is not for sale after the company confirmed its engine production will end after next season for financial reasons.

In an interview with L'Equipe, the Italian defended the strategy of Alpine racing from 2026 with a power unit provided by another manufacturer, most likely Mercedes.

The move, announced this week, will end nearly half a century of Renault engines in F1, with the French manufacturer powering Williams, Benetton, their own team and Red Bull to 12 constructors' titles.

De Meo said Renault were spending €200-250 million ($220.5-275.7m) a year on engine production at the Viry-Châtillon facility outside Paris, while buying an engine from another manufacturer would cost less than $20m.

He added that Renault was at a disadvantage to other teams in having chassis and engine factories in separate countries, with the team based at Enstone in central England.

"At Enstone they are very independent, used to working under different colours. I should have re-grouped everything but it would have been in England. Hard, no?," De Meo said.

De Meo said former Renault team boss Flavio Briatore had been brought in to revitalise the F1 project, not oversee a change of ownership.

"I read that he was tasked with packaging the project to eventually sell the team. It's completely false," he said.

"Every fortnight I get calls from financiers, eccentrics, who want to enter F1. They know that after 2026 it will be much more expensive.

"I won't sell, I'm not stupid. Being in F1 is essential for the Alpine brand. We are in a closed club. It brings credibility for the brand among motor racing fans. We don't need the money."

De Meo said most fans focused on the team and drivers rather than the engine, citing championship leaders McLaren who are winning and attracting sponsors while using a Mercedes power unit.

Alpine, whose investors include Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds and NFL stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, had become "invisible" -- ninth of 10 teams, with vanishing marketing benefits, De Meo said.

"Two more years like that and the project would have deflated completely," De Meo said.

- Reuters