- After months of intense work, the Alpine A424 contested its first race in the premier category of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
- Alpine Endurance Team achieved its goal of finishing the Qatar Airways Qatar 1812 Km to accumulate as much information as possible with its two crews.
- Following this encouraging start to its learning season, the A-arrow brand now looks ahead to the next round, the 6 Hours of Imola (19-21 April).
With over 2,500 kilometres covered during the Prologue, Alpine Endurance Team embarked humbly on the A424’s racing debut in the FIA World Endurance Championship Hypercar category.
The team continued its week with 220 laps of free practice on Thursday and Friday at the Lusail International Circuit. The first qualifying session of the season saw Nicolas Lapierre finish 14th with the #36, less than twelve-hundredths of a second shy of a place in Hyperpole and first among the new manufacturers in Hypercar. Meanwhile, Paul-Loup Chatin qualified three places further back in the #35.
On Saturday, the two Alpine A424s made their first start, with Nicolas Lapierre and Ferdinand Habsburg avoiding the hazards of the first corner. On hard tyres, both drivers applied themselves in their double stint, and the #35 car briefly took the lead just before the two-hour mark.
Mick Schumacher and Charles Milesi took over shortly afterwards to continue their teammates’ efforts despite a five-second penalty for incorrect positioning during a pit-stop for the #35 and contact with an LMGT3 for the #36. Matthieu Vaxiviere and Paul-Loup Chatin relayed them, with each putting in a double stint on hard tyres.
As night fell, Mick Schumacher and Ferdinand Habsburg were back behind the wheel, with the hard compound on the left flank and medium tyres on the right. On a track becoming increasingly treacherous with gravel on the racing line, the two trios increased the pace before handing over the final sprint to Nicolas Lapierre and Charles Milesi.
Thanks to excellent energy management during a race that included two short neutralisations, the #35 Alpine made one less stop, with Charles Milesi taking the opportunity to move up the order. The team’s efforts paid off as the Frenchman crossed the line in ninth place and first among the new manufacturers in the Hypercar category. Meanwhile, the #36 and Nicolas Lapierre were 13th after changing front-end bodywork damaged by contact in the field earlier on.
It was a good race, and we didn’t expect to finish in the top ten on our debut on a new track. It was a great achievement to cross the finish line with both cars, but having one in eighth place is a genuine bonus. Our pace looks promising against several other manufacturers, which is encouraging for the future, even though there’s still much to learn and understand. The team has done a great job, and we are all looking forward to Imola
Charles MilesiAfter the race, both crews moved up one position following the disqualification of the #93 car. With a wealth of data gathered on the A424 in race conditions, Alpine Endurance Team is now focusing on the next race of the season, the 6 Hours of Imola (April 19-21).
CLASSIFICATIONS
Qatar Airways Qatar 1812 Km
1. Porsche Penske Motorsport #6
2. Hertz Team JOTA #12
3. Porsche Penske Motorsport #5
8. Alpine Elf Endurance Team #35
12. Alpine Elf Endurance Team #36
FIA Hypercar World Endurance Drivers’ Championship
1. Estre / Lotterer / Vanthoor – 38 points
2. Stevens / Ilott / Nato – 27 points
3. Campbell / Christensen / Makowiecki – 24 points
8. Chatin / Habsburg / Milesi – 6 points
12. Lapierre / Schumacher / Vaxiviere – 0 point
FIA Hypercar World Endurance Manufacturers’ Championship
1. Porsche – 39 points
2. Cadillac – 23 points
3. Ferrari – 18 points
4. Toyota – 15 points
5. Alpine – 12 points
