The upcoming season will be a turning point for many Formula 1 teams as they will be able to take advantage of the new rules and create a winning car. Everyone on the grid claims to have their own plan to make a competitive car and go for victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix, and one of them is Alpine .
The French scored an epic win in Hungary last year, with Esteban Ocon holding off pressure from Sebastian Vettel’s Aston Martin, as well as a podium finish with Fernando Alonso in Qatar.
The Asturian, as soon as he got off the car, stated that this was not Alpine’s objective, but that they were focused on 2022 to have a winning car. The CEO of the French team, Laurent Rossi , spoke about how they face the new course with the change in regulations.
“We are not nervous because we are going to win a lot, there are many advantages for us,” said the manager of the French team. “Of course, we can do worse than last year, but I doubt it.”
“I think we have a good and different development when it comes to the engine, something that is necessary. We have a good development also on the car, and we are respecting the roadmap that we set for the start of the season.”
“That will bring us closer, maybe not to the level of the best teams, but we don’t know,” Rossi said. “We assume that if we gain some points in aerodynamics, some in kilowatts and some in electrical power deployment, we will reduce the gap to the best, that is if they also continue to progress.”
The Alpine team will try to improve on the result it obtained in 2021, a fifth position that tasted like a lot after seeing the performance of the AlphaTauri during the course. Those of Enstone surpassed those of Faenza by 13 points in the classification, which provided them with some succulent extra millions to face the development of their car.
Much of that achievement came from Ocon’s victory before the summer break, the first since the Lotus-branded structure had Raikkonen on the top of the podium at the 2013 Australian GP.
“It was a great moment in the season, a statement of the good work we did,” said Rossi. “But I would say, and it’s surprising to everyone, that it wasn’t as much as the 19 points we got for the podium and fifth place in Qatar or Esteban’s strong fourth place finish in Saudi Arabia.”
“It’s more the progression and learning and constant improvement of the team that augurs well for the brand in the future. The victory was great, don’t get me wrong, but it happened under specific circumstances,” he said.
“We held on for 65 laps, so we deserved it, but under normal race conditions, like these last ones, that’s what makes me feel confident and proud with the team. That was as important as the win.”
