Alpine poised for sports car step up in 2025

With a freshened-up driver roster and an updated pair of A424s, the Alpine Endurance Team looks poised to take a significant step forward in the 2025 FIA WEC season.

Last year was a rollercoaster for the French manufacturer with its debuting ORECA-based, turbo V6-powered LMDh prototype. The most important race of the season – the Le Mans 24 Hours – was a total disaster, with both cars suffering terminal engine failures early in the race. But the back half of the season produced a series of highly encouraging performances, headlined by a podium finish in Fuji. The engine management strategy it adopted post-Le Mans successfully helped the team bridge the gap to a more permanent solution.

To ensure the momentum it built carries over into the new campaign, Alpine – and the Signatech team that operates the program – have kept themselves busy in the winter. Both organizations worked overtime developing and testing an update package for the engine that brings a lot of promise.

“We are continuing our learning with this car. We have done a lot of testing and worked on our engine. We feel we have a better knowledge of the car,” Alpine Endurance Team boss Philippe Sinault told RACER during the Prologue.

“After Le Mans, it was not an easy situation. But we did a huge job of reacting well and bringing improvements around the engine and the turbo. It makes a big improvement to the reliability. That’s the subject of this ‘Joker’ (Alpine’s first) and we are happy after our winter running.”

Sinault was not prepared to go into specifics, but he did clarify that the original engine hasn’t been replaced, it’s been modified. Key new components have been signed off after extensive work conducted in-house by the OEM’s engine department in Viry, France.

“It’s the same engine, with internal parts and the turbo changed, but the base is the same. Work started one minute after the DNF at Le Mans. We are on time with this, we are ready to operate this package now. It’s a change that brings serenity.”

If the fix works as advertised, we should see Alpine putting significantly more effort into extracting performance from the car at each race weekend. This will be music to the ears of its drivers, who head into the campaign with high hopes of fighting up front.

Sinault and Alpine’s management team are confident they have a well-rounded group at their disposal, with a highly-motivated Frederic Makowiecki joining from Porsche and Jules Gounon graduating from his previous role as the reserve to a full-timer. The duo are set to take on the campaign with the returning quartet of Charles Milesi, Paul Loup Chatin, Ferdinand Habsburg and Mick Schumacher.

Mick Schumacher (left) returns, while Jules Gounon (right) has been promoted to the team's race lineup. Fabrizio Boldoni/DPPI

“With Jules it’s a continuation of a good job last year (when he drove for the team four times), he’s ready to compete at this level,” Sinault said. “And with Fred, when we saw he could be available we didn’t hesitate to contact him. They both add real value to the project.”

The newcomers come in to replace Nicolas Lapierre, who has stepped away from driving to take up a post as sporting director, and Matthieu Vaxiviere, who has been shifted to the nominated reserve role. It was a tough decision to make, Sinualt explained, but he was keen to stress that his journey with the team is not over.

“It’s difficult, on the human side,” he added. “I think it’s a good choice for the project and it was a priority to keep Matt in the loop and make sure he stays with us. I am happy with this. To have him as reserve is a quality option and the door is still open for him.”

So what does a good start to the season look like for the team, after a successful Prologue in which its A424s completed 684 laps of the Qatar circuit without any major issues? Sinualt is keen to temper expectations but admits the Alpine WEC effort, as a whole, is in a far better place than 12 months ago.

“It’s going to be difficult early this season while we get up to speed with the package. And it’s hard because we start with a 10-hour race, it’s like starting the Tour de France with a mountain stage," he said.

“The main priority is reliability, 100 percent, and then we can look at results. If you ask me if we are ready to win regularly, I think today, no, we have to stay humble. We are not quite ready to fight with Toyota, Ferrari and Porsche yet. To start the year we want no DNFs and would like to fight for the top five if we do so.”