Colapinto and Gasly's new car sparks Alpine's 2026 hopes | OneFootball

Pierre Gasly expressed all his optimism for the coming year and highlighted the new car they will be driving alongside the Argentine driver. "In terms of chassis and engine, I think everything looks good," he assured.

If Alpine had a season to forget in Formula 1 - last in the Constructors' Championship - much is due to the recurring problems with their cars. In almost every Grand Prix, Franco Colapinto lamented failures that caused delays and did not allow him to be competitive. Therefore, looking ahead to 2026, the team developed an improved car that received the approval of Flavio Briatore and now his teammate Pierre Gasly.

The brand new A526 continues to be improved day by day by the engineers and mechanics at the Enstone factory and will hit the track at the beginning of January, before the pre-season tests. The regrets over the aerodynamic and mechanical shortcomings of the cars, which forced the drivers to overcome in each race and bring out their full potential, will be left behind. "I am very happy and very proud of how the team managed to handle such a season, because when you don't have a competitive car, it's very difficult and it's easy to give up," said the Frenchman.

And he continued: "Even so, despite the tough results, everyone stood firm and gave their best. I remain very proud of all the guys and everyone who works in the team. I am very eager to start the next season."

Regarding the car, with a new engine, transmission, and suspension from Mercedes, Gasly did not hide his enthusiasm: "There will be a lot of work to do during the winter. We have already started working for next year. For my part, I am very optimistic about the car we are building. In terms of chassis and engine, I think everything looks good. We are meeting all our objectives. I am very excited about 2026."

In the next season, there will be a change in technical regulations that also generates expectation: the cars and tires will be smaller and power units divided 50% in combustion and 50% in electric energy, a technical leap that prevents drawing early conclusions until the tests arrive.

With hindsight, the 29-year-old French driver knows there will be much to improve and was self-critical: "Once you lower the visor, you only think about performance and squeezing everything possible out of the car. I am sure there will be things to review and analyze, but not for too long."

Days ago, through an official statement, Alpine confirmed that on January 23, they will present the A526, with which Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly will compete in 2026. The event will take place in Barcelona at 12:30 PM (5:30 PM Argentine time) and will mark the formal start of the project that inaugurates a new technical era for the team.

The A526 will rev its engines just a few days later, during a private test from January 26 to 30 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, where the adaptation work to the new aerodynamic and mechanical package will begin. Then it will be time for the official tests in Bahrain from February 11 to 13 and from February 18 to 20, before the season debut in Australia on March 8.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.