Alain Prost had been an advisor to the French team for the past six years but recently he felt being sidelined in many cases.
After the news of Alain Prost’s departure made headlines, he went on to Instagram to express his disappointment at the way the news got out.
Prost had been associated with the team as their non-executive director and advisor for the past six years. Prost revealed the reasons for his exit to the French newspaper L’Equipe.
He explained that following the arrival of the CEO Laurent Rossi, Prost felt increasingly sidelined which left him unhappy.
Alain Prost speaks out regarding his departure from Alpine 💬#F1 #Formula1 #AlainProst #Alpine #Motorsport pic.twitter.com/rpX31s916q
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He said, “The 2021 season was very disturbing to me as I felt that those who had been here for a long time had to go.”
“I accept change, as you don’t have to always do F1 the same way. You can do it differently, and that’s what was done throughout last year. But for me, it has become too complicated.
“I wasn’t involved in decision making anymore, I sometimes disagreed – completely – but I had to keep conveying the official word.
“Even as a member of the board, I found out about some decisions at the last minute. I may not be listened to, but I should at least be informed in time. It’s a matter of respect. Relationships have become more and more complicated, I could feel a lot of jealousy.”
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Alain Prost says that Rossi wants all the spotlight
The Frenchman said that Rossi made it clear to him that he no longer wanted an advisor. Rossi is working on a new management structure. A few days ago, the team announced that its executive director Marcin Budkowski had left with immediate effect.
However, there are talks that Aston Martin’s former team boss Otmar Szafnauer will take over as the new team principal of the French team.
Prost said, “Laurent Rossi wants to be alone, not to be annoyed by anyone. He actually told me himself that he no longer needed an advisor.”
“It was in Qatar, but he still offered me a contract in Abu Dhabi, which I refused. I still must say that I believed and still do in this ambitious project which has incredibly boosted motivation in the group.”
However, Prost feels that there is now a real drive to sideline a lot of people. “Laurent Rossi wants all the spotlight. What I’m interested in is the challenge of being in a team, being listened to and being involved in some decisions,” he further added.
“I was very much in the background on purpose, but I discreetly had some influence despite all the disagreements I kept to myself.”
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