As Christian Horner was relieved of his duties as team principal of Red Bull and CEO of Red Bull Racing last week, the timing seemed off, given the fact that we are still two races away from Formula 1's annual summer break. Laurent Mekies was immediately promoted from Racing Bulls and a lot of attention has been on him since the change.
In the meantime, Racing Bulls have named Alan Permane as their new team principal for the foreseeable future. The British engineer is set to transition from his previous role as racing director, which he took on at the start of the 2024 season.
Permane was a member of Alpine for over 30 years, starting his tenure as a test electronics engineer when the team was known as Benetton. He worked his way up the ranks and stuck through the team’s many name changes from Renault to Lotus to Renault again and then to Alpine. Permane was let go in 2023 after the Belgian Grand Prix, along with former Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer.
Permane may be a familiar face
While the British engineer spent substantial time with Alpine, he was the chief race engineer from 2007 to 2011 when the team was known as Renault. His time in that role was highlighted by Crashgate, the scandal that rocked the world of motorsport in 2008.
As the investigation into the incident was extensive, an individual under the alias of "Witness X" provided substantial evidence which helped find those within Renault responsible for the planning and execution.
It was only several years later that "Witness X" was revealed to be Permane. Pat Symonds and Flavio Briatore were the two individuals banned from Formula 1 for their respective roles in the scandal, though both bans were overturned in court in 2010.
Permane comes from a very successful background, in which he has shown true integrity in the sport of Formula 1. His track record makes him a great choice as the new team principal of Racing Bulls as they look to continue their good form into the summer break and the remainder of the 2025 season.