Just before the weekend in Imola has begun, Alfa Romeo issued an official statement that they will extend their partnership with Sauber Motorsport for “at least a year” to continue their participation in Formula One. 

As said by Frederic Vasseur in the statement: “The extension of our relationship with Alfa Romeo is a true statement of intent from both parties. In Sauber, Alfa Romeo found a committed, performance-driven partner to which they could entrust their brand: we are honoured to carry the heritage and past success of Alfa Romeo in our name. Both parties always intended for this relationship to bear fruit in the long term: we have laid some solid foundations in the last three season and we aim to reap the rewards of this work in 2021 and beyond.”

Although it is a fantastic news that one more team will remain as it is for at least the next season, it prompted a lot of questions regarding the future of the sport and teams beyond the season of 2021. 

As we know, not so long ago Honda announced their departure from F1 with the end of 2021. It is an end to the commitment they took upon in 2015, first with McLaren and then with Red Bull and Toro Rosso/Alpha Tauri. Will the fact that Alfa Romeo decided to extend their stint only for one more year mean that they will also leave F1? This is of course as of now just a speculation, but it definitely is a worrying one. 

Alfa Romeo’s single year extension of its partnership with Sauber through 2021 shows that may be the limit of the Italian brand’s interest - which means joining Honda in departing #F1 in a year’s time. The sport is fortunate Renault Group & Mercedes are keeping the faith.

— Mark Gallagher (@_markgallagher) October 29, 2020

In F1, we currently have 4 different engine manufacturers. With the end of 2021, we will go down to only 3. When Honda will exit, we will only have Ferrari, Renault and Mercedes left. So far when we think of it, the only real battle is possible between Renault and Mercedes, because Ferrari is still struggling to find the pace that they used to have. If Red Bull will be forced to embark on a journey again with Renault in case they will not be able to secure a deal with other engine supplier, Renault and Mercedes will supply the most competitive teams on the grid. Having only two competitive(ish) manufacturers with no real possibility to enter from outside by other ones is definitely not a good step for the sport. If the entry point for new teams and new manufacturers won’t be improved, F1 will not survive. Although the financial side is definitely a big factor in it, it also boils down to the competitiveness. If those won’t be improved, and the teams will not have a real “forecast” of how long it will take them to be able to contend for the title when they enter the sport (in relation to the amount of money they will have to spend to be able to do so), we can surely say goodbye to the sport we know now. Add to that the entire debate around engines, alternative fuel sources etc, and you have the disaster formula in front of you. 

In regards to engines, can the decision of Alfa Romeo stem from what is currently happening in the automotive market? Possibly, as F1 is of course more or less linked with it. 

In case you did not know, the FCA (Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles) and PSA (French Automobile Group) will merge together in (allegedly) the first quarter of 2021. That means the birth of Stellantis, a group that will take care of the following brands: Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroën, Dodge, DS, Fiat, Jeep, Lancia, Maserati, Opel, Peugeot, Ram and Vauxhall. That can possibly mean two things: either the decision of Alfa Romeo means the exit from F1, or is only concerning 1 year due to the merge of these two groups together. 

Alfa Romeo might exit F1 by 2021 depending on the new objectives established by the group. Although many don’t think that the road cars section has anything to do with the racing section of a brand, that is of course not true. The automobile companies, when it comes to both their financial and non-financial goals have to take such things into consideration when it comes to progress of a certain brand. That means that although for many the Alfa Romeo name on the Sauber car is only an “image thing”, they might leave the sport depending on the direction that the new administration will decide on. 

On the other hand, as mentioned, the one year extension might not mean the end of Alfa in F1, and is just a legality issue, regarding the fact the brand will have a new administration over it from 2021, but that might not threaten the continuity of the commitment in F1. 

To summarise, should we be worried? Definitely. Will that mean the end of Alfa in F1? Possibly no. But that does not mean that the bosses (current and future) of F1 should not take into consideration those things. F1 is definitely facing difficulties on many different levels that should be acknowledged and hopefully resolved as fast as possible, otherwise the future of the sport will be seriously threatened. 

The full statement from Alfa Romeo can be found here.