by VALERIO BARRETTA
Alpine, nightmare start
They certainly haven't been easy months Alpine. The corporate chaos encountered already in 2023 had knock-on effects, leading to disruptions on the track, and now Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon find themselves driving the slowest car on the grid. In Bahrain the A524 occupied the last row, while in Jeddah it monopolized the penultimate row. In short, the French are still waiting for their first qualification in Q3, not to mention the points still stuck at zero.
Famin's words
To the well-known difficulties on the engine side (last year Alpine even asked the FIA for help in strengthening its power unit, without success) this year there have been added problems from an aerodynamic point of view. The car, for example, has no traction, a critical issue that team principal Bruno Famin hopes to resolve with the first developments: “In Bahrain it was particularly difficult for this reason. We expected a complicated start to the season, we also said so at the launch of the car, however it was a shock to be on the back row in the first qualifying of the year“.
“Bahrain was confirmation of the need to change our team“, he added. “We are aware of the problems. We must remember that we were at the first race of a very long season, with a completely new car and with developments on the way. We will work hard to improve the car“.
Revolving doors
New people will be working on the next developments of the A524. In Alpine, in fact, the doors are more revolving than ever: only last week Matt Harman, Dirk de Beer and Bob Bell, respectively technical director, head of aerodynamics and team consultant, left. The Enstone team has restructured the technical sector by adopting the McLaren model, with a “three-headed structure” in the technical direction. In Woking, however, there are ideas and a clear chain of command. Anarchy reigns in Alpine even at the highest levels.
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