Alpine issue response as Renault Italian GP staff strike threat looms

Alpine say no decision has been made regarding the future of their French operation as staff look set to protest during the Italian Grand Prix weekend.

A group of workers for Renault will strike on Friday ahead of the race in Monza following a proposed idea to stop production of F1 engines in France.

Alpine say no decision made as threat of Renault staff strike looms

Alpine Racing France employees announced on Thursday that around 100 employees would arrive at the Monza circuit to protest what they say is Alpine’s decision to end their F1 activities in France.

The team is currently split across two locations, one in Enstone, UK where the chassis is made and the other in Viry-Châtillon, France where the engine is made.

But with increased talk that the team are considering abandoning their own work project and potentially becoming a customer of Mercedes, staff in Renault will strike in protest at the decision.

However, Alpine now claims that no decision has been made regarding the future of the team’s operations in France.

“We are aware of some activities planned this weekend from staff of Viry,” the team said. “We understand from their communication these will be peaceful protests and will not impact team operations.

“The transformation project is still being evaluated and no decision has been taken yet by Alpine’s management.

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“The dialogue, which opened since the project was presented to the Viry employee representatives in July, is important to Alpine’s management and will be pursued in the upcoming weeks.”

The protest will take place at two locations on Friday – Monza and Viry. At Monza, there will be two groups spread across the grandstand N4 and N24 displaying messages advocating for the retention of a French engine in F1. These supporters will be dressed in a white T-shirt with the Alpine logo, the message #ViryOnTrack and a black armband.

Staff in the garage will “wear a distinctive sign” to support the movement.

Meanwhile at Viry, the “vast majority” of employees will strike and local politicians have been invited to attend the demonstration.

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