Abiteboul to depart Renault with immediate effect!

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Renault announced on Monday that F1 team boss Cyril Abiteboul will depart the French manufacturer with immediate effect.

Abiteboul who guided Renault's return to F1 as a works outfit in 2016, had been expected to step up to a management role within the company following a restructuring.

However, the Frenchman will leave Renault altogether while Laurent Rossi, Renault's director of strategy and business development, has been appointed as CEO of Alpine F1.

Rossi will therefore overlook Renault's F1 team and the whole of the company's motorsport activities, answering directly to Renault chief executive officer Luca de Meo.

It's uncertain who will inherit the role as team principal for Alpine F1 outfit, but company director Marcin Budkowski is cited as a most likely replacement while departing Suzuki MotoGP boss Davide Brivio has also been linked with the job.

"I would like to thank the Groupe Renault for having trusted me for many years, particularly with the relaunch and reconstruction of the team since 2016," commented Abiteboul.

"The solid foundations of the racing team and the entities in France and England built over these years, the strategic evolution of the sport towards a more economically sustainable model, and more recently the Alpine project which provides a renewed sense of meaning and dynamism, all point to a very fine trajectory."

Read also: A blue sign of things to come for Alpine F1

De Meo added: "I would like to warmly thank Cyril for his tireless involvement, which notably led the Renault F1 Team from the penultimate place in 2016 to the podiums last season.

"His remarkable work in F1 since 2007 allows us to look to the future, with a strong team and the new Alpine F1 Team identity to conquer the podiums this year."

Abiteboul has given no indication of what may lie ahead for himself, but the positive tone of Monday's release is perhaps an indication that the split was amicable and that an exciting future awaits the 43-year-old.

Watch this space...

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.