Alpine roll out your race plan

Nicolas lapierre absent, because designated to take the start at the wheel of theAlpine A480 and therefore retained by the ACO pre-race briefing, Philippe Sinault looked back on this week which started hard and was marked yesterday by a fight for pole position.

Philippe Sinault: “Test Sunday is an important and complicated day because we aim to really prepare for the race during this full day of driving. Obviously we weren't playing the performance on Sunday, but we immediately realized that we had a deficit in top speed. On the other hand, we quickly defined a good balance for the car, with a level of grip which continued to evolve positively on this track covering 70% of departmental and national roads. When we arrived on Wednesday, we noticed this Vmax deficit again even though we had worked on the subject. Obviously this meant that the BOP definition placed us outside the window, we explained this to the ACO and the FIA. I always insist that this Balance of Performance system is disturbing and questionable, but it is a rule of the game that we must accept and manage so there is no point in going into a philosophical battle. Furthermore, there is a permanent and constructive exchange with the ACO and the FIA, it is in no way a power struggle. We are absolutely not asking for an advantage, we are not playing an unhealthy game. We just wanted to be reframed and quickly we saw that they considered the subject and listened to our arguments. We were only asking for a little more top speed and while the value of what we got may seem low, it gave us peace of mind. The resurrection ofAlpine in Hyperpole, I like this term, is partly due to this. Furthermore, the Hyperpole format allows us to have a clear lap, especially in the winding sections where we are more efficient, which highlighted the quality of our car and our drivers. Finally of course we were in optimized settings for the search for performance. If I had told you that we were preparing for the race during this half hour you would not have believed me. »

Alpine ElfTeam, Alpine A480 © DPPI

In turn, Matthieu Vaxivière gives us his analysis from the cockpit of theAlpine A480.

Matthieu Vaxivière: “Above all, the preparation of the track by the ACO teams was perfect, from the test day on Sunday. From the outset we had a good balance because we have worked well with the team since last year. As a result, we were able to quickly address the problem of straight line performance. Managing traffic with the LMP2s is easier with this adjustment, as we saw yesterday. We were able to put Toyota a little bit under pressure in Hyperpole and we saw their drivers do some stupid things with the Track Limits. Our ambitions in racing are always the same, namely to produce an error-free copy while keeping the Toyotas and Glickenhaus under pressure. Consistency is our strength and we are ready. »

Alpine ElfTeam, Alpine A480 © DPPI

Philippe Sinault: “The new tires allow us to bring a little more thermal to the front, which was our weakness last year because in a straight line we lost a lot of temperature. We will be able to maintain our 2021 race plan in terms of relay length while making better use of the tires. Andrew negrao did a lot of work during testing on consistency and that should pay off in the race. In terms of relay length, the Toyotas should maintain their one-lap advantage even if the yellow flags, Slow Zones and Safety Cars mean that things are constantly evolving. Nicolas Lapierre will start. With conditions a little warmer than what we have experienced since the start of the week, it will be different, but we have prepared well for that, it will go in the right direction. Concerning the strategy at the driver level, we know each other really well now with Nico Lapierre, Matthieu Vaxivière and André Negrao. It's a discussion that we have together, these are shared choices, never a subject of negotiation. André was supposed to start the race at Sebring, but in the morning he told me he wasn't feeling well and we immediately changed plans in good agreement. You can imagine, starting at Sebring, on pole, is still extraordinary, but he came to see me and we changed our plans on his initiative. Likewise yesterday, Matthieu had to do the qualifier and we changed at the last minute. To be very clear, it is never a question of driver level, it is choices in the interest of the team. It's a pleasure to work with these three drivers, that's why I fought to start again with them, to continue what we had started to build. This might be the best crew I've ever had. »

Matthieu Vaxivière: “It’s also because we have a great boss, I’m very proud to work with him (laughs)”

Philippe Sinault: “We have built an ideal race plan, which as usual will change after 10 minutes (laughs). We're not just focusing on Toyota. Even if their performance in qualifying surprised me, we will have to count on Glickenhaus. They have progressed enormously and they will be there throughout the race. I still expect to scrap with them. There are 5 of us to play for the win”

Alpine ElfTeam, Alpine A480 © DPPI

It is acquired thatAlpine will leave the premier category at the end of this season with the ambition of returning to Hypercar in 2024. Philippe Sinault gives us his ideas for 2023 and the Centenary edition.

Philippe Sinault: “I don’t know if this answer will suit you… In 2023 we will be there, we will play something but not with this car and not in this Hypercar category. My desire is to continue working with these three pilots... if they are willing! So, the plan is not yet determined but it is quite easy to imagine. Our goal is to be on the starting grid and to have things to celebrate.”

Alpine ElfTeam, Alpine A480 © DPPI

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