Last week it was announced that the collaboration between Marcin Budkowski and Alpine was over. The Pole had been fully employed by the French outfit since April 2018 and had served as executive director since the start of the 2021 season. However, that was not to last. Via Instagram, Budkowski is now alluding to a so-called “garden leave.”
This term is used in Formula 1 when a person has to stay home for a period of time after saying goodbye to an employer. He can only start working for a new shift if he has fulfilled the gardening leave. This was introduced because otherwise sensitive information from the teams could end up at the competitor in no time when personnel change.
For Budkowski, that’s probably what awaits him. Prior to his move to Renault at the end of 2017, Budkowski also had to deal with gardening leave. He was first employed by the FIA and, as an employee of the motorsport federation, therefore had some knowledge of other teams. If these ended up directly at Renault, it would hurt the racing teams. Budkowski was initially only supposed to be banned from working for Renault for a period of three months, but after six Formula 1 teams complained about the arrangement, the furlough period was then increased to around six months. From April 2018, Budkowski could start working for the team. However, after just over three years, he can already look for a new challenge.
Will Budkowski be sitting at home for the next few months?
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