The Renault name will disappear from Formula 1 after the 2025 season, marking the conclusion of a turbulent but ultimately decorated involvement spanning nearly five decades. The French manufacturer’s decision to adopt Mercedes power units from 2026 has brought a premature end to an engineering programme that delivered multiple world championships and pioneered turbocharged technology in the modern era.
Pioneering turbo technology at Silverstone
Renault’s world championship journey began at the 1977 British Grand Prix, where Jean-Pierre Jabouille piloted the revolutionary RS01 – Formula 1’s first turbocharged machine. The distinctive yellow car earned its ‘teapot’ nickname from the plumes of smoke that frequently billowed from its pioneering powertrain, a testament to the immense technical challenges faced by the engineers at Viry-Châtillon.
Running as the sole Michelin-equipped entry in a 36-car field dominated by Goodyear rubber, Jabouille qualified 21st at Silverstone, approximately 1.6 seconds adrift of pole position. His race lasted just 16 laps before turbo failure forced retirement, following an earlier pit stop to address a cracked inlet manifold. The inauspicious debut hinted at the reliability struggles that would characterise Renault’s early years, yet the technological foundation had been established.
Breakthrough victory and championship near-miss
Persistence eventually paid dividends at the 1979 French Grand Prix, where Jabouille claimed both his personal maiden victory and Renault’s first Formula 1 triumph at Dijon-Prenois. The achievement came after 17 retirements in the marque’s opening 24 race starts, underlining the perseverance required to make turbo technology competitive. Though the race is better remembered for the spectacular wheel-to-wheel combat between Gilles Villeneuve and René Arnoux over second position, Jabouille’s composed performance from the front demonstrated Renault’s growing maturity.
By 1983, the French manufacturer had evolved into a genuine championship contender. Alain Prost secured victories at Paul Ricard, Spa-Francorchamps, Silverstone and the Österreichring, establishing a 14-point advantage with four races remaining. However, turbo reliability proved Renault’s undoing once more, with Prost retiring from three of the final four grands prix. Nelson Piquet claimed the drivers’ title by a mere two points, leaving Renault to rue what might have been.
Customer success and temporary withdrawal
Between 1983 and 1986, Renault supplied powertrains to customer teams including Lotus, Ligier and eventually Tyrrell. Ayrton Senna delivered a landmark result at the 1985 Portuguese Grand Prix, dominating wet conditions at Estoril to win by over a minute for Lotus. The victory represented the British team’s first since Colin Chapman’s death and demonstrated the Renault engine’s competitiveness in the right chassis.
Renault withdrew as a constructor after 1985 but maintained its engine programme through 1986 before departing Formula 1 entirely. The hiatus proved temporary, with Williams securing Renault’s return as an engine supplier for 1989, this time with a normally aspirated V10 replacing the previous turbo V6 configuration.
Williams partnership delivers sustained excellence
Thierry Boutsen took two victories in 1989 despite reliability concerns at the season opener in Brazil. The partnership strengthened significantly when Nigel Mansell joined for 1991, driving Adrian Newey’s FW14 to five wins whilst challenging Senna for race victories throughout the campaign.
Mansell’s coronation arrived in 1992, when he dominated the opening five races and secured the world championship at the Hungarian Grand Prix in mid-August. The Englishman’s title represented Renault’s first as an engine manufacturer, validating the investment in the Williams partnership. Alain Prost succeeded Mansell for 1993, claiming a historic fourth world title with seven victories in the opening ten races, though engine failure at Monza delayed his championship confirmation until Portugal.
The 1994 season brought tragedy and controversy. Ayrton Senna’s fatal accident at Imola left Damon Hill to lead Williams’ championship charge in the difficult FW16. Hill lost the title in a collision with Michael Schumacher at Adelaide, though Williams retained the constructors’ crown.
Dual supply and historic French Grand Prix sweep
Benetton switched to Renault power for 1995, creating a formidable combination as Schumacher won the drivers’ title whilst Renault-powered machinery claimed 16 of 17 victories. The sole exception came at Montreal, where Jean Alesi inherited victory after a late Schumacher gearbox problem.
The 1996 French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours showcased Renault’s complete dominance. Williams drivers Hill and Jacques Villeneuve finished first and second, followed by Benetton’s Alesi and Gerhard Berger, delivering an unprecedented 1-2-3-4 for the French manufacturer. Hill clinched the drivers’ championship that year as Williams won twelve races.
Villeneuve succeeded his team-mate as champion in 1997, controversially prevailing after Schumacher’s attempted intervention at Jerez backfired. Yet Renault had already announced its departure the previous June, citing diminishing marketing returns from sustained success. The engine architecture lived on under Mecachrome, Supertec and Playlife badges through 2000, still claiming twelve podiums despite becoming outdated.
Benetton takeover and Alonso’s emergence
Renault purchased Benetton in March 2000, gradually integrating the team before full rebranding for 2002. The return proved difficult initially, with just 23 points and no podiums in that opening campaign. However, Fernando Alonso‘s breakthrough arrived at the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix, where the young Spaniard converted pole position into a commanding victory, lapping even five-time champion Schumacher.
The R25 transformed Renault into title contenders for 2005. Whilst Kimi Räikkönen’s McLaren offered superior raw pace, reliability deficiencies allowed Alonso to secure both drivers’ and constructors’ championships. The Spaniard retained his crown in 2006 through a captivating duel with Schumacher, who suffered a critical engine failure whilst level on points at Suzuka. Alonso’s second-place finish in Brazil sealed both titles, with Renault edging Ferrari by just five points in the constructors’ standings.
Crashgate scandal and disgraceful exit
The switch to control Bridgestone tyres for 2007 undermined Renault’s competitiveness after years optimising for Michelin rubber. A solitary podium through Heikki Kovalainen represented a dramatic decline. Alonso returned for 2008 but qualified only 15th at Singapore after technical issues in Q2. What followed would become Formula 1’s most egregious sporting fraud.
Team principal Flavio Briatore and chief engineer Pat Symonds orchestrated Nelson Piquet Jr’s deliberate crash on lap 14, deploying the safety car immediately after Alonso’s early pit stop. With the pitlane closed under 2008 regulations until cars bunched behind the safety car, Alonso inherited the lead and claimed victory. The conspiracy emerged one year later, forcing Renault to withdraw in disgrace before the season concluded.
Red Bull era brings final championship glory
Renault supplied Red Bull Racing from 2008 onwards, with the partnership delivering four consecutive constructors’ and drivers’ titles between 2010 and 2013. Sebastian Vettel claimed all four drivers’ crowns, twice in closely contested battles. Renault-powered cars won 44 of 77 races during this period, including Daniel Ricciardo’s memorable 2014 victories at Montreal, Budapest and Spa-Francorchamps – the only non-Mercedes wins that season.
The manufacturer returned as a constructor for 2016 after purchasing the Lotus team, setting ambitious targets of podiums by 2018 and title contention by 2020. Reality fell drastically short, with just eight points scored in 2016 and intermittent podium finishes thereafter, notably Esteban Ocon’s controlled victory at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix following a first-corner incident.
What this means going forward
The Alpine brand’s switch to Mercedes power units from 2026 represents a pragmatic acknowledgment of Renault’s failure to compete with modern hybrid regulations. Despite protests from Viry-Châtillon personnel, outgoing Renault CEO Luca de Meo authorised the decision, ending the engine programme that pioneered turbocharging and delivered twelve world championships across multiple eras.
Alpine’s last-place finish in the 2024 constructors’ championship underscores how far standards slipped from Laurent Rossi’s optimistic 100-race plan to reach the summit. The manufacturer’s legacy includes 170 grand prix victories as engine supplier and constructor, yet the final chapter has been written in disappointment rather than celebration, with one of Formula 1’s most decorated names departing as a clear backmarker after 48 years of intermittent but often brilliant involvement.
