The Alpine Formula 1 team have been garnering headlines this season, but most of them have not been for the right reasons, and the future of the team is murky at best.
From multiple team principal changes, driver changes, and now even the departure of a key member of the Renault Group has left many wondering what will happen to the Enstone-based team in the future.
Luca de Meo's departure as Renault Group CEO has been the latest shock move relating to Alpine, with the team having transitioned to Alpine from Renault F1 under de Meo's leadership in 2021.
It has led to star driver Pierre Gasly to call for the team to stick together during this period of turmoil, when results are also not living up to expectations on track as much as off it.
It has raised the question of whether or not Renault could ultimately look to sell the team in the near future.
If this were to become a possibility, it may present Gasly an opportunity to reunite with a former Alpine boss of his, one who oversaw a period of more substantial stability.
How Otmar Szafnauer and Pierre Gasly can reunite
Otmar Szafnauer was a key person involved in the decision to bring Gasly to Alpine in 2023, pulling him away from his Red Bull purgatory and giving him the opportunity to race for a team that had just finished fourth in the constructor standings the year before.
Results were mixed during the first period of the season, and the team were still reeling from the loss of current world championship favorite Oscar Piastri, whose startling announcement the year prior led to a court case that the team ultimately lost.
Szafnauer was largely made to be the scapegoat of losing such a promising young talent, and with Gasly and Esteban Ocon clashing on track to affect the team's standing, he was let go after the Belgian Grand Prix.
The announcement, however, was made prior to that weekend.
Since then, though, Alpine have almost been in free fall. After 10 races in 2023, under Szafnauer's watch, Gasly and Ocon had combined for 11 points finishes, with the latter even claiming a P3 podium finish in Azerbaijan.
The following year, by the same point in the year, the pair had combined for just six points finishes. The highest that year were Gasly's P9 finishes in Canada and Spain.
The 2025 season has been even worse for the team, with Gasly claiming just two points finishes in full Grands Prix, with an additional sprint point, and the team have slumped to the very bottom of the constructor standings.
Stability issues have followed, making many wonder what the team would be like had Szafnauer been given more time.
And while Gasly has called for the team to stick together, this thought must be somewhere at the back of his mind too.
Szafnauer has been largely quiet since his departure from the Formula 1 paddock, but he recently made the surprising revelation that he's keen to get back into the sport and has even managed to acquire a serious party interested in entering at some point in the near future.
Speaking to the media, he has specifically mentioned this as a possibility in the process to land a 12th team on the grid, with Cadillac set to become the 11th in 2026, however he has even touted the possibility of some existing teams selling in the future, potentially opening up another avenue for him to return.
Taking the Toto Wolff approach, where he would have a stake in the new team or setup, Szafnauer could be an ideal candidate to launch a bid for Alpine, should Renault opt to cut ties with Formula 1 altogether, having already withdrawn their engine for next season.
If Alpine were to be put up for sale, and Szafnauer is serious about making a return, it could be poetic to see him involved in the bid to take the Enstone outfit and turn it into his own project, where he would have a much larger involvement and could work to return the team to more stable, fruitful times.
Gasly would likely still be around and under contract and could be an ideal, experienced driver to have for a team stepping into Formula 1 for the first time.
While things were not perfect for Szafnauer and Gasly during their brief time together, things were significantly better before the former's departure, and a partnership between the two could bring positive times back to the team, even if it's competing under a brand-new name and license.
Should Renault opt to sell, Szafnauer could very well present one of the more serious bids out there, and seeing him and Gasly reunite may not be as big of a surprise as initially thought.