History
Alpine F1 History
The French Alpine F1 team is born out of the French Renault team in 2021.
In order to promote Groupe Renault's sports car brand, Alpine, the organization rebranded this Formula 1 team from simply Renault to Alpine. Due to sponsorship deals, the team is officially named BWT Alpine F1 team.
Esteban Ocon wins the 2021 Hungarian F1 GP in the Alpine A521
In its first Formula 1 season, the 2021 World Championship, the French team returned the Renault Group to a Grand Prix victory, as Esteban Ocon took a surprising win at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest.
It was the group's first Formula 1 win since the 2008 Japanese Grand Prix and the first for an Enstone-based team since the 2013 Australian Grand Prix.
The team finished 2021 with another podium, as Fernando Alonso (champion with Renault in 2005 and 2006) finished third in the 2021 Qatar Grand Prix.
In its first Formula 1 season, Alpine finished fifth in the World Constructors' Championship with 155 points (81 from Alonso and 74 from Ocon). The results included one win, a podium, and five Top-5 finishes overall).
The first half of the 2022 Formula 1 season was quite strong for Alpine, with Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso scoring 99 points in that span of the championship. The points' tally put Alpine fourth in the World Constructors' Championship after the first half, behind Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes.
Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly
However, the summer break started with controversy, as Fernando Alonso announced on 1 August 2022 that he was leaving the team to join Aston Martin in 2023. After the news shocked Alpine management, the team announced reserve driver Oscar Piastri as Alonso's replacement for 2023.
However, the Australian, who won the 2021 F2 championship, announced that the news wasn't true and that he wasn't going to drive for Alpine in 2023.
Ultimately, Frenchman and Grand-Prix winner Pierre Gasly was announced as Ocon's teammate for 2023 after Gasly agreed on a multi-year deal.
The 2022 campaign finished with Alpine in fourth place in the World Constructors' Championship after scoring 173 points. The result is the team's best in Formula 1 under the Alpine name.
Esteban Ocon (FRA) Alpine F1 Team A523. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 7, Monaco Grand Prix, Friday 26th May 2023. Monte Carlo, Monaco.
The French lineup of Alpine started off the 2023 season well, with Gasly scoring points in four of the first six races and Ocon doing so in three of those races. The pair came together in the 2023 Australian Grand Prix but continued driving well afterward.
Ocon, on his side, finished on the podium at the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix with a brilliant P3 that followed an excellent qualifying session for him. He had qualified fourth but started the race in third place due to a penalty to the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc.
By keeping seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton behind in a dry-wet Monaco race, Ocon achieved his third F1 podium in 117 races.
The team's second and final podium in 2023 came in the Dutch Grand Prix, with Pierre Gasly securing a solid third place in conditions of mixed weather.
Alpine saw former rivals McLaren and Aston Martin make a huge leap in 2023 and quickly fell far behind those two teams. Although Alpine had two podiums in 2023, the season was the worst for the French team since entering F1 in 2021.
Alpine had finished fifth in 2021 and fourth in 2022, but fell to sixth in 2023. The gaps weren't close either, with Alpine falling 160 points behind fifth-placed Aston Martin and 182 behind fourth-placed McLaren.
Official website: https://www.alpinecars.com/en/formula-1/the-team/