Alpine explain "complicated" Brexit-hit preparations for new F1 season

Ewan Gale
Monday 22 March 2021 14:45 - Updated: 14:45

Alpine executive director Marcin Budkowski has revealed that border delays linked to Brexit forced the team to change the way it worked whilst preparing for the new Formula 1 season.

Delays have been prominent at United Kingdom ports since the country left the European Union at the start of the year, with Alpine one of the teams suffering the consequences associated with being based on both sides of the English channel.

Budkowski conceded the team had to begin operating differently due to new restrictions imposed post-Brexit.

"It is complicated. It does create delays," Budkowski said. "Not only because of our two bases.

"We have suppliers that are based in Germany, France and Italy and we just need to take a little bit more of a margin on the parts that are critical to run the car than we normally would.

"If it just goes through the border like this, it will get stuck for a few days. F1 teams, we tend to leave everything until the last minute and now we just have to take a little bit more margin.

"It is not the type of thing we are used to doing because we push everything to the limit, but we have to cope with it because otherwise, we are at risk of missing some important elements."

Amidst the logistical issues of Brexit, Covid-19 restrictions have also had an effect on the team's preparations ahead of its first campaign.

Budkowski has also revealed Alpine faced a challenge to complete its recent shakedown of the A521 after its launch.

"The usual logistics issue that everybody has been experiencing at the border if you want," he said of Covid's impact.

"So, that delays the various parts and the engines going between Viry and Enstone.

"The biggest challenge was really preparing for the fire-up and shakedown because the engineers from Viry had to quarantine for the shakedown."