Alpine Finishes fourth at Imola: "Our best start to the season since the program's launch"

On a circuit renowned for its scarcity of overtaking opportunities, Alpine delivered an aggressive race with the number 35. Ferdinand Habsburg started seventh and immediately gained positions at the start before handing over to António Felix da Costa, then to Charles Milesi who picked up the pace in the deteriorating conditions at the end of the race to finish in fourth position, just off the podium. In this particular context of a final season in Hypercar for AlpineThis result takes on added significance. The team knows that every race counts double this year, and starting with a solid fourth place, built up fairly and without any major setbacks on the #35, sends a clear signal about the program's intentions for this final campaign.

The Austrian driver who started the race is more than satisfied: “This result marks our best start to the season since the program's launch. Everyone gave their all, and we can be proud of how we approached the race, our performance level, and the mindset we displayed. I thoroughly enjoyed working with my new engineers and teammates while continuing to learn the car, especially in traffic, where the feeling is different from last year. There were some great battles on track, and I want to commend António and Charles, who put in a strong finish to convert a seventh-place grid position into a fourth-place finish in such a competitive championship.”

Da Costa, who was competing in his first race with the team, adds: “I’m satisfied with our performance. It was a very demanding race, with several safety car periods. Making the right strategic choices wasn’t easy, but the team rose to the challenge. I think we extracted the maximum from our package this weekend. Ferdinand and Charles did an excellent job, and we can be happy with this fourth place to start our season. We can now look ahead to Spa and continue our preparations for the…” 24 Hours of Le Mans »

Charles Milesi offers a slight nuance: “It was a good race. We lost a little time changing all four tires during the first virtual safety car period, but we managed to optimize our performance. The top three were a cut above today, and this result is probably the best we could have aimed for. We can be satisfied with the work done this winter, and we know the areas where we still need to improve.”

The 36th penalty, Martins impresses in his debut

Number 36 had a much more complicated race. Victor Martins, who was making his debut in EnduranceHe had, however, set the fastest provisional lap of the race before a drive-through penalty for an infraction under the virtual safety car ruined the crew's result. For his first hours in a Hypercar, the Frenchman nevertheless draws an overall positive conclusion: “It was a pretty positive weekend. I learned a lot, especially about aspects of endurance racing that were completely new to me. Race traffic is very different from practice traffic, and that was clearly one of the key points today. Our pace was competitive, and I feel like I did things well. The goal is to build on this weekend, continue in this direction, optimize every detail, and avoid mistakes to put everything together.”

Frédéric Makowiecki highlights traffic difficulties as a priority area of ​​work: “We showed some good things at times. The pace was clearly promising in clean air. However, we encountered more difficulties in traffic, and that’s an important area to work on going forward. This race has therefore given us valuable insights, especially as the next event is coming up very quickly.” Jules Gounon, for his part, does not hide his disappointment: “It was a very difficult race for us, and our result outside the top ten is obviously disappointing. We encountered some minor issues that hampered our progress, in addition to a penalty. That said, the pace was there, and the sister car's fourth-place finish confirms that. We will analyze the race in detail to understand what we can improve and come back stronger at Spa.”

A clear-sighted management approach to correcting errors

Behind the scenes, the management ofAlpine He draws a measured but overall positive conclusion. Philippe Sinault details precisely what worked and what didn't: “We opted for an aggressive approach, notably by working almost exclusively with soft tires to understand their long-term behavior while anticipating potentially cooler and more unpredictable conditions. This paid off. Ferdinand got off to a great start, placing the number 35 car in the right group, António also did a very good job in his first race with the team, and Charles managed a conservative tire and energy strategy to secure fourth place.”

“Regarding car number 36, the feeling is more mixed. We made too many mistakes by not stopping it during the first neutralization, then with a penalty under the virtual safety car. However, the pace shown was very close to that of the sister car, which is promising for the future.”He says. Nicolas lapierre, sports director ofAlpine in Endurance racing since 2025, succinctly summarizes the essentials: "It's a satisfying start to the season, with an encouraging fourth place for our new package in its first race. All six of our drivers showed good pace, but we made some small mistakes that potentially cost us an even better result. The main thing is that we have a solid foundation and we have clearly identified the areas we need to improve as quickly as possible."

Axel Plasse, the Hypertech director ofAlpine, highlights the collective dynamic observed throughout the weekend: “I spent the entire weekend with the team and I saw a very positive dynamic, with real cohesion, good chemistry, and a mindset characterized by kindness, solidarity, and high standards. There are still a few minor details to fine-tune, but I am satisfied with the organizational adjustments made this winter and the foundation on which we can build for the rest of the season.” Next event: the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, from May 7 to 9, the final rehearsal before the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

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