“BWT Alpine F1 Team can confirm that Flavio Briatore has been appointed by Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo as his Executive Advisor for the Formula One Division,” read a brief media bulletin from Renault-owned Alpine. This is the same man who oversaw Fernando Alonso’s title before vacating his position in 2009. Alpine, which has fallen in a shocking downward spiral post-2022, has called in the man who brought them glory the last time. Briatore’s first job is to find a suitable driver to fill in for the outgoing Esteban Ocon. Who will it be?

Mick Schumacher or Jack Doohan? Who will Alpine pick?

While Mick Schumacher comes in with experience of 44 Grands Prix and two long years of Formula 1, his competitor for the Alpine seat, Jack Doohan, has yet to begin his F1 campaign. Amid the dilemma, the French team had planned to pit the two against each other in a test. Though the team kept an eye out for Carlos Sainz, he has chosen to go to their closest competitors on the grid this year.

Alpine is the same team that lost out on Oscar Piastri, despite him being their reserve driver. Now, they are in the same position again, as one of their options is Doohan, who has contributed immensely to their development. Something which hasn’t gone unnoticed by the Enstone clan or they are probably learning from their mistakes. To add to that, Mick Schaumacer’s past is not in his favor, as he was constantly beaten by his teammate Kevin Magnussen in his second year in F1 and racked up hundreds of millions of dollars in crash damages.

FIA commissioner Johnny Herbert has an ominous take on Mick Schumacher’s chances of an F1 entry. The Briton told Marca, “Mick is not on anyone’s shopping list. Nobody wants him in F1.” Herbert added, “It is detrimental to a driver’s career not to be able to beat your teammate. Mick couldn’t do it.” Amid this indecision, there are rumors of Mick’s old teammate Nikita Mazepin making a surprise return to F1 via Alpine.

Can Alpine pick someone other than Mick Schumacher or Jack Doohan?

Alpine’s restructuring continued when Oliver Oakes, the founder and boss of Hitech GP, was announced as Bruno Famin’s successor. Oakes has established himself as one of the leading management figures in the junior categories. But let us understand how this move can transpire in a domino effect in favor of Mazepins.

Following Oakes’ appointment, multiple reports suggested that a merger between Alpine and Hitech is on the horizon. Let me also remind you that Hitech’s bid to enter F1 last year was rejected by the governing body, the FIA. But probably they found a different route to realize their dream.

Another piece of this puzzle is that Hitech’s F1 entry application was submitted following an investment by Kazakh billionaire Vladimir Kim. Adding two and two together, German publication Auto Motor und Sport has claimed that Hitech and Mr. Kim are now keen to enter F1 via “the Alpine route”, giving rise to rumors that Renault could sell the team to Hitech.

Nikita Mazepin’s father, Dmitry has long been rumored to be one of the investors in Hitech with the incoming TP Oakes. Though Alpine is in no need of a cash injection or financial savings because of the investments they raised from the likes of Ryan Reynolds and Travis Kelce etc., one cannot rule out the Hitech possibility because of the steep downfall. And if that is the case, Nikita Mazepin may find an Uralkali-like way back to F1. Who do you think it will be?