F1 News: Alpine Makes Huge Breakthrough in Car Development for Miami Grand Prix
Alpine introduced key car upgrades earlier than planned, including a significant new floor design
The Alpine F1 team has unveiled major upgrades earlier than planned ahead of the Miami Grand Prix, potentially marking a turning point for the team's 2024 season. These updates, including a significant new floor design, could see their level of performance change significantly this weekend.
The Enstone outfit has been battling a challenging start to its 2024 season, but has pushed through substantial developmental upgrades in a bid to overturn its fortunes. The French team has grappled with their A524 machinery, which struggled with significant downforce issues and weight challenges. However, a key breakthrough was achieved as pivotal upgrades intended for the Miami Grand Prix were introduced early at the previous race in Shanghai.
Bruno Famin, Alpine’s team principal, elaborated on the pressing issues that have hindered Alpine's performance, in a conversation with Autosport.
“The fight is so tough now that every gain, every small gain, is good to make and this is what we are doing.
"The weight — people talk a lot about the car being overweight — it was not the major problem of the car. The major problem of the car is that we lacked downforce and we had difficulties to make the tyres work for quali," he added.
Famin also shared insights into the accelerated timeline for implementing the new floor design, a critical component of the recent upgrades.
"In Shanghai, we had the new floor; we were supposed to have the new floor only here in Miami. We have been able [to] with the guys at the factory pushing hard to make one for Shanghai,” he revealed.
Esteban Ocon, one of Alpine's two French drivers, also reflected on improvements brought by the weight reduction. "Clearly better with the weight [loss]. We clearly gained good performance with that," Ocon acknowledged. However, he admitted that while progress was evident, the results in qualifying rounds remained suboptimal.
"We're able to fight with other cars a bit more closely. But we're still lacking a decent amount of performance in qualifying. And that's still the place that we need to be working on and focusing on with the overall performance of the car,” Ocon asserted.
To support these rapid upgrades, Alpine has restructured their technical department, now under the leadership of David Sanchez, who transitioned from McLaren which boasts the same setup. The strategic internal reshuffle aims to harness innovative technical strategies that align with the evolved demands of modern Formula 1 racing.
“Now, here for the first time and faster than planned and scheduled, we will have the two cars at the minimum weight.
“We brought two upgrades on the aerodynamic side [this season]. But we know that all of this is only part of the way we need to do.
“Now, with the new organisation in place, with David arriving yesterday, we will move to the next step. For the time being, it’s a bit early to talk about it.”
Despite the ambitious upgrades and strategic reshuffles, Alpine remains among the few teams, including Williams and Sauber, yet to score any points this season. The pressure continues to mount as the team seeks to translate these technical modifications into tangible results on the race track.