Flavio Briatore refused to deliberately order Nelson Pique Jr. to crash to help Renault win the 2008 F1 Singapore Grand Prix.
In 2009, a scandal called “Crash Gate” was revealed following the plunder of Piquet.
Piquet argued that Briatore, then the boss of Renault, had proposed to intentionally crash in their favor to effectively correct the race.
On lap 15 of the first Singapore Grand Prix, Pique crashed the car, causing a safety car.
Teammate Fernando Alonso then won the race from 15th on the grid, giving Renault and Briatore their first victory in the season.
A year later, Piquet was fired mid-season by Renault, with Briartoll still in charge.
After the investigation, Briartoll and technical director Pat Simmons were banned from sports.
Briarthor was initially handed a lifetime ban, but that was later overturned.
Simmons was handed over for five years and later revived in Formula 1 with Williams.
Nelson Piquet and Flavio Blyator
In an interview with the Italian publication Corriere Della Sera, Briatore even denied talking to Piquet while on the team.
“No, I’m not interested. I didn’t tell him much when he was driving for me,” he said.
“He and I didn’t talk. In fact, the French courts overridden the ban imposed by the FIA and awarded me symbolic compensation. The president who banned me – Mosley, the same as disqualifying Schumacher.
“When I left, I was tired. I won everything and launched a new driver. It wasn’t the business I found exciting anymore. It became just another job.
“And also, my son Falco was about to be born, so I wanted to be close to my wife.”
Briatore recently returned to Formula 1 as executive director at Alpine.
The 75-year-old plays a key role in the major decisions that Alpine makes.
From drivers such as Franco Colapinto’s signature and becoming the 2026 customer team.
It will affect Felipe Massa’s 2008 F1 title bid, with “CrashGate” continuing to have a lasting impact.
The improvised safety car caused by the Piquet crash has undoubtedly sacrificed the potential for victory on the Brazilians.
