Signing Alonso risks Renault ’revolution’ - Zecchi

A former F1 team boss has warned Renault that signing Fernando Alonso for 2021 could be dangerous.

The French works team’s boss Cyril Abiteboul has admitted that filling Daniel Ricciardo’s place by reuniting with former two-time champion Alonso is "an option".

"It could be a lot of drivers," Abiteboul told the RMC program ’Par ici la sortie’.

"There are some great drivers who will be available next year. The one you mentioned is an option and there are others," he added.

The Frenchman says Renault will take its time to make the call, describing the early driver decisions of Ferrari and McLaren as "strange".

But former Ferrari team manager Marco Andrea Zecchi thinks signing up Alonso would also be a questionable decision for Renault, who have just announced that 15,000 jobs will be shed amid the corona crisis.

"If you fire people and then spend a lot of money on Alonso, you risk provoking a revolution," Zecchi, who headed the Maranello race team between 1989 and 1992, told L’Equipe.

"But if Renault presents its plan by talking about the desire to promote the brand, produce electric models and the need for a new ambassador like Alonso, it may be easier to be accepted," he added.