Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi has been replaced at the head of the French carmaker by vice-president Philippe Krief, effective immediately.

Rossi took up the CEO role in 2021 as the Formula 1 team transitioned from Renault to Alpine to increase visibility of the boutique car brand. The Frenchman will be shifted to a “special projects” role in the broader Groupe Renault.

Rossi’s hands-on reign featured the acquisition from Aston Martin of Otmar Szafnauer as team principal, but engineer Marcin Budkowski and French racing icon Alain Prost were collateral damage of his attempt to shake the team out of its midfield lethargy.