Alonso and Alpine arrive at the Bahrain GP "satisfied with the A522"

After some pre-season tests that have left some doubts about the new Renault -powered Alpine A522, the French team is already in Sakhir ready for the first Grand Prix of the season in Bahrain.

Although it is true that Alpine was one of the teams that suffered the most setbacks during the six days of testing, the last day of action on the track with Fernando Alonso at the wheel left good feelings both in terms of performance and in terms of the reliability of the car. .

With an important regulatory change, the 2022 Formula 1 season translates into a great opportunity for all those teams that, like Alpine , were not fighting for the top positions in 2021.

Speaking about this new campaign that will start this weekend at the Sakhir International Circuit, the Asturian driver was positive and, at the same time, recognized that until they go to the classification it will be impossible to know where they are compared to the rest of the competitors

“The winter has gone well. I feel in good physical shape and I have also had some time to rest. We have been busy the last few weeks in Barcelona and Bahrain and because we have spent more time in the car, I am much more prepared. We are reasonably satisfied with the A522 and our pre-season preparations.”

“No one knows what engine modes or fuel loads the others have used during testing, so it’s impossible to make a prediction at this point.”

“You always want to do more laps [in testing], because learning is endless in Formula 1. I’m looking forward to Saturday and seeing where we are compared to our rivals,” said Fernando Alonso .

Laurent Rossi , executive director of the French structure, also spoke about the internal sensations of the team before the first round of the season and, beyond being satisfied with the work done so far, he recognized that 2022 is a great opportunity for they.

“It’s always exciting to start a new season and especially this year because there are more question marks due to technical rule changes and the impact they may have on competitiveness and grid order.”

“We had very positive days in Barcelona and Bahrain , but we also suffered some slightly more complicated sessions with usual problems that appeared from time to time. I am very proud of the effort of the whole team. Now the time has come to see what we have” , the one from Alpine concluded.