Flavio Briatore has expressed dissatisfaction with the current generation of Formula 1 drivers. The Italian businessman is in the process of deciding on the second driver for Alpine, alongside the recently contracted Pierre Gasly, but is unimpressed with his options outside of the French racing team. Aside from Max Verstappen, Briatore feels ‘nothing’ for the rest of the current grid.
Flavio Briatore has been an advisor to Alpine since 2024, but the Italian businessman has a much longer history in Formula 1. He was at the helm of Benetton in the eighties and nineties, and it was Briatore who brought Michael Schumacher to the team. The current advisor has seen many drivers come and go, but is less impressed with the current generation on the grid. Briatore believes that the level of the current drivers is even disappointing.
The topic came up for Briatore because he is still considering who will be Pierre Gasly’s teammate at Alpine in 2026. The Italian tells The Race that current driver Franco Colapinto and reserve driver Paul Aron are the two remaining contenders. Although Briatore briefly considered choosing a driver from outside the Alpine racing team, none of the options appeal to him.
‘Boom’
“I see no other options outside of Alpine,” Briatore candidly tells The Race. “We see others, but we feel nothing for them, because the good guys go ‘boom’. I remember when Schumi (Michael Schumacher, ed.) was driving in Group C for Sauber, he won every race. GP2 was the same story. Hamilton was also ‘bam, bam, bam, bam’. Fernando was racing in Formula 3000 or something, and he won every race. I remember testing Fernando. I put Fernando in Minardi and Giancarlo called me and said: ‘I’ve never seen anything like this’. If you leave Max out of consideration. The rest…?” Briatore then just shrugs his shoulders.”
