Szafnauer to ’lose weight’ after F1 sacking

Otmar Szafnauer says losing weight is now at the top of his list after being sacked by Alpine.

Although the Renault-owned team said at Spa-Francorchamps that his immediate departure was agreed mutually, former boss Szafnauer says it actually caught him by surprise.

"I don’t know why this decision was made," he told Servus TV.

"We had four retirements in a row but none of them were actually due to the team," said Szafnauer, who said technical issues due to a supplier and crashes were the cause.

"But if the decision-makers don’t have the right information, they can’t then take the right steps."

Because Szafnauer’s ousting came as a surprise to him, he said he doesn’t yet have any plans about what might come next.

"I’m only going to take a few weeks or months off now and try to lose weight," he revealed. "I might run a little and go to the gym every day."