Why Alfa's boss is ready for the task of securing a stronger F1 future

Can the Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team use the budget cap and new regulations as a springboard to take a leap up the grid in 2022? That’s certainly the hope of the owners and team principal Fred Vasseur as they try to put the pieces in place to ensure a stronger future for the Swiss-based outfit.

Their ambitions are shared by all the hitherto “midfield” teams that see opportunities in the changes that the sport is undertaking, so it won’t be easy to turn those dreams into reality. However, Vasseur is confident that progress can be made.

“The budget cap is back in our ballpark,” says Vasseur. “We are used to working with this kind of budget. And I think even if today we are below the cap, I'm convinced that we'll be able to find new sponsors to join the team, and we will be able to run at the cap. It's an opportunity for a team like us.”

Alfa Romeo has already built up some useful momentum, even if it’s not obvious from this year’s race results. In pure performance terms, no team has made a bigger step since last season and yet thus far points have been hard to find.

Lap times have improved relative to the pacesetters at a better rate than anyone else on the grid thanks to a combination of chassis work and a much-improved Ferrari power unit. However that’s translated only to humble 10th place finishes for Antonio Giovinazzi in Monaco, and Kimi Raikkonen in Baku. A string of six 11th and 12th places shared between the two drivers tells a tale of near misses. Alfa has been stuck on the fringes of the top 10 all year, usually with different rivals ahead or behind on a given weekend.

"It's bit of a mixed feeling,” says Vasseur of this season. “On one hand, we are the team with the best improvement compared to last year, thanks to the job done in the factory. But on the other hand, we didn't score many points, we were always 11th or 12th, even we have no DNF in the races from the beginning, or just one.

Antonio Giovinazzi, Monaco 2021

Photo by: Alfa Romeo F1 Team

“But it doesn't matter. We have to stay focused on our job and continue to try to continue to improve. And we are not far away from P8-P9, sometimes it's one tenth. We made some small mistakes, we were sometimes a bit unlucky. We have to come with a complete clean sheet if we want to score points, and to put everything together. The motivation is there.”

In common with fellow Ferrari user Haas last year, Alfa was at the mercy of the form of Maranello’s power units. Given that the works cars sometimes struggled to qualify in the top 10, it was inevitable its two customers suffered as well.

The improvement in Ferrari’s PU performance has been a boost for Alfa, but Vasseur says it’s hard to assign numbers between the engine and the chassis.

"At some stage you could lose the motivation or pay less attention to the small details than when you're fighting for Q3. It's always much easier to get the best from everybody when you're fighting for the front than the back" Frederic Vasseur

“It's difficult to do the proper split, because you also have the change of regulations, and so on,” he says. “But at the end, it's quite clear that Ferrari did a step forward and we did a good step forward also. The power unit is much better today than 12 months ago, and we are also on the right way."

Vasseur downplays any frustration he might have experienced over Ferrari’s poor form last year. Instead he tries to see positives, suggesting that the struggle at the back of the grid encouraged his staff to dig deeper.

“As a team, we have to be focused on what we can manage and what is in our hands,” he says. “And we have to stay focused on the development of the chassis, on the drivers, try to get the best out of the car on every single weekend.

“For sure it's much more difficult when you are 18th or 19th. At some stage you could lose the motivation or pay less attention to the small details than when you're fighting for Q3. It's always much easier to get the best from everybody when you're fighting for the front than the back.

Antonio Giovinazzi, Monaco 2021

Photo by: Alfa Romeo F1 Team

“But I think it was a good exercise, honestly, even if it was tough! Everybody stayed very motivated, and we already did a step forward in the last part of the season last year. On the chassis side I think that we are on the path of the last stages of 2020, because in the last five or six races we made a decent step forward. And I think we did a good aero package based on the new regulations, and together with the step forward on the engine, we are in much better shape than in 2020.”

Alfa was confident enough in its package to switch off development of the current car at the end of April in order to focus on 2022. However, an unexpected hurdle popped up heading into this weekend’s French GP, when the FIA’s revised rear wing deflection test comes into force. While most of the focus of the flexi-wing saga has been on Red Bull, Alfa too has had to make substantial changes in order to meet the test. That created extra aero and production work that the team didn’t need.

“The philosophy of F1 and the mentality of F1 is to be at the limit on every single area,” says Vasseur. “And when you have a regulation, and you allow a deflection of X for a certain load, the job of every single team is to do it to save weight, to gain on every single area.

“If they come and say, ‘It's not the same load, it's 50% more,’ because that’s the case here, you're out. It means that as a small team, we are struggling. We have had to find solutions, we had to stop other development for next year, just because we had to produce new products. I don't want to go deep in details, but it's a decent part of the package.

“I think it's the same question, the same issue, for the big teams. They are struggling with the limit of the cost cap, and we are struggling with the budget.”

Like Red Bull's management, Vasseur says that the focus should be on the other end of the car, with flexing front wings as much of an issue.

"We have exactly the same approach, collectively, on the front wing,” he says. “If you compare the deformation of the front wing, it will be the next topic on the table because it's exactly the same story. And the front wing, the impact on the performance is much bigger, because you also changing the aero balance.

Kimi Raikkonen, Barcelona 2021

Photo by: Alfa Romeo F1 Team

“I had a look at some videos, and the movement of the front wing on some cars is mega. I'm not complaining, because there is a test, and they fulfil the test. If they don't, they're out. But do we have to change the test on the front wing also? Or you could say that if someone is not able to be at the minimum weight, they change the weight?

“You can't complain about the teams, because everybody is playing his own game. And if someone has the feeling that another team has an advantage, he will fight against them.”

"The name is a huge asset for the company and a big asset for F1, it was the first brand that became world champion, and we need to keep these historic names with us" Frederic Vasseur

The car aside, this year has also seen steady improvement from Giovinazzi. The Italian has consistently outperformed Raikkonen, and attracted favourable comments in the paddock. A heavy qualifying crash in Baku was a setback, but he recovered from the back of the grid to finish 11th, just behind his team-mate.

“He’s made a good step forward and a good improvement over the winter,” Vasseur says of Giovinazzi. “Now he is doing a very strong job in quali.

PLUS: The unsung star of F1 2021 so far 

“He was sometimes a bit unlucky. In Spain we had the issue with the tyre valve on the pitstop, and then the marshalling system of the FIA [the safety car dashboard delta] didn't work. And we lost the race like this, we lost 20 seconds due to the marshalling system.

“It's not in the hands of Antonio, and he has to be focused on what he's doing, and not to start to find reasons. But he did a decent step forward. And also, in terms of positioning in the team, I think he's much more focused on himself and not always focused on Kimi, who could be the reference. It was like this in the past, and I think it was one of the issues. Now he's convinced by his own potential, and focused on himself. And it's much better, obviously."

Now in his third full year with the team, Giovinazzi has been given a decent chance to prove himself. However, there are plenty of youngsters lined up behind him in the Ferrari Driver Academy, including Alfa reserve Callum Ilott, all of whom have an eye on his seat.

Callum Ilott, Fred Vasseur Baku 2021

Photo by: Alfa Romeo F1 Team

“Yeah, but this is the life in F1, we are all under pressure,” says Vasseur. “And I think the pressure that Antonio has on his shoulders is not the biggest one of the paddock. Ask Valtteri [Bottas]!

PLUS: Why Britain's Ferrari-linked F1 hopeful is playing the waiting game

“And he has to deal with it, because if he has the opportunity to continue, and to grow with the team and to deliver and so on, the pressure will be bigger and bigger also. This is part of the job.”

Meanwhile inevitably there’s already talk of Raikkonen’s future. The Finn, who celebrates the 20th anniversary of his debut with Sauber this year, will turn 42 in October.

“In the races Kimi did a very strong job, strong performances,” says his team boss. “He was always able to manage perfectly the situation. And we were very close to scoring points in Imola. And even in Barcelona I think one lap more and we were able to be in front of [Esteban] Ocon. He is doing very strong performances, and he is an asset for the team.”

But will he still be around in 2022?

“We will discuss about this a bit later,” replies Vasseur. “We have enough to do with the succession of races and so on, and we have a clear target to be able to come back to score points. We are not far away from Alpine and Aston Martin on track, and this is a big challenge for us. There will be a time to discuss about 2022.”

PLUS: The secret to Raikkonen's F1 longevity in his own words

For now Vasseur’s priority is to secure continued support from Alfa. The current deal runs only to the end of this year, and talks are ongoing about an extension.

Kimi Raikkonen, Monaco 2021

Photo by: Alfa Romeo F1 Team

Alfa isn’t just about the monetary value of the title sponsorship. As with Aston Martin, the brand has obvious appeal to other companies who want to be associated with it. It’s a much easier sell than Sauber ever was.

“It's true that the name is a huge asset for the company and a big asset for F1, it was the first brand that became world champion, and we need to keep these historic names with us,” Vasseur explains. “I'm not just thinking about Alfa Romeo, I think it's true for some other brands in F1. And it's part of this story. And we have to be a good mix between the historic side and technology and the future.”

Retaining the Alfa backing will have huge significance for the team, because finances are so tight. COVID had a serious impact last year, with reduced overall income for the teams, and Alfa did a good job of hiding just how difficult it was to make ends meet.

"We are going in the right direction also on this, and we have completely new technical regulations, and we will see the results next year" Frederic Vasseur

“Last year was a critical situation, because the impact on the prize fund was mega,” Vasseur admits. “And I hope that this season it won't be the case. I think it won't be the case, because it's already a good season, and we're in a different situation.

“Last year was very critical also for the sponsors. In every single area, it was a difficult one. And at the end, we had no big benefits or no big savings, I would say, due to the pandemic.

“This year is a bit different, because we had the large carryover of the 2020 car, and also because we were aware of the situation much earlier. Last year we went to Melbourne, and in our case we had spent probably 60% of the budget before we discovered the situation. This season we were able to anticipate it, and it was a complete different story."

The good news for all teams and their owners is that F1 has switched its focus to spending less.

“Over the last 24 months, and thanks also to Chase [Carey], we made a huge step forward in terms of the global approach for F1,” Vasseur says. “The cost cap is now in place. We will reduce the cost cap over the next years, and I think this is a good direction.

Antonio Giovinazzi, Baku 2021

Photo by: Alfa Romeo F1 Team

“The distribution of the prize fund is much more equal. You can always say that you want to get more. I think the guy in P1 and the guy in P10 both want to get more, but it's not possible. But we are going in the right direction also on this, and we have completely new technical regulations, and we will see the results next year.

“It's an opportunity, and with the global picture around F1, I think that we are able to attract new sponsors, and we have more and more contact with new partners. The fact that F1 was able to come back on track and to be the first global sport to do so last year was a huge push.”

Since taking over the Sauber team principal role in 2017 Vasseur has steadied the ship, and set it on a much more promising course. He’s planning to be around for the long term.

“F1 is a tough world, and I'm not complaining because I think it's much more difficult for the guys into the garage, than for myself,” he says. “And doing more and more races is also a challenge. But I think as long as you have the passion for this, it's quite easy to deal with.”

Fred Vasseur, Monaco 2021

Photo by: Alfa Romeo F1 Team