Red Bull, Ferrari, Audi want to take advantage of Alpine's situation

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red bull, audi and ferrari try to take over renault staff
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  • Ben Stevens
  • Editor

Renault recently announced they would stop building their own F1 engines in-house. The news led to anger and incomprehension among the employees involved, but for them, there is a chance to remain within Formula 1.

Red Bull Racing, Ferrari and Audi in particular have opened the hunt for the engineers working in Viry-Châtillon on the Renault engines that power Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly's Alpines. The French team's three rivals see Renault's personnel as a welcome addition to their own engine divisions.

Ferrari in particular hits its stride with Renault

From 2026 onwards, Red Bull Racing and Audi will be running power units they have developed themselves. Renault's personnel could play an important role in this with their experience. However, according to Auto, Motor und Sport, it is mainly Ferrari that is trying to hire Renault's team members. The German media reports that dozens of Renault engineers have already had job interviews with the Italian team. 

Hiring high-level Renault engineers would have advantages for Ferrari on multiple levels. It would bring valuable knowledge, as Renault's personnel were already working on a power unit for '26 and beyond. The other advantage would be frustrating Red Bull and Audi, as they would fall short of the knowledge and expertise of the Renault staff.