Alpine's 2025 Pain Paves Way for 2026 Gains
After a dismal 2025 spent focusing on the future, Alpine is optimistic its early start on the 2026 regulations will yield a competitive car and propel them back up the grid.
Alpine deliberately sacrificed its 2025 season, finishing last in the standings, to gain a head start on the radical 2026 regulations. Now, with the new A526 car on track for its January reveal, the Enstone-based team is expressing cautious optimism that their early investment will translate into a significant competitive leap forward.
Why it matters:
The 2026 regulations represent one of the biggest resets in modern F1 history, offering a rare opportunity for teams to break the current competitive order. Alpine's aggressive strategy of abandoning 2025 is a high-stakes gamble that could either catapult them back into contention or prove to be a costly miscalculation if their early concept fails to deliver on track.
The details:
- Alpine finished 10th in the 2025 Constructors' Championship with just 22 points, a direct result of halting development on the A525 early to focus on 2026. Only Pierre Gasly scored points for the team.
- The new A526 has already passed its mandatory crash tests. Team leaders describe it as 'lighter' and 'stronger' than its predecessor, with the design meeting the new 770kg minimum weight target being a key focus.
- A major part of the reset is the switch from an in-house Renault power unit to becoming a Mercedes customer team, aligning them with a proven championship-winning engine supplier.
- Under new leadership, including Managing Director Steve Nielsen and executive advisor Flavio Briatore, the team reports a 'can-do' spirit and high dedication, with staff working an average 55-hour week to meet development targets.
- The team's racing director, Dave Greenwood, stated they are 'very happy with where we are' and are 'absolutely on plan' for the new car's debut.
What's next:
The A526 is set to be officially revealed on January 23rd, but as Steve Nielsen noted, the true test will be the stopwatch on track. Pre-season testing and the early races of 2026 will quickly reveal if Alpine's gamble has paid off and if they have genuinely gained an advantage over their rivals who focused more on 2025. The ultimate goal is to use this reset as a springboard to return to race-winning form and eventually re-establish themselves as championship contenders.