Alpine enters the 2026 Formula 1 season looking for a reset. After a forgettable last-place finish in the Constructors Championship, the team tries to look ahead. With high-profile leadership changes and struggling to find any stability or consistency, Alpine see the regulation change as another hurdle on its path to finding success in F1. Along with the many technical changes for the upcoming season, the team has decided to ditch the old Renault engine for a Mercedes Power unit, as they hope the added power and consistency will lead to additional gains for the team.

Heading into the season, Alpine’s objective is clear: merely surviving at the back of the grid won’t cut it; the team will need to re-establish itself to show it can fight the rest of the pack.

Key team facts

Full Team Name	BWT Alpine F1 Team
Base	Enstone, United Kingdom
Team Principal	Flavio Briatore*
Technical Director	David Sanchez
Engine Supplier	Mercedes-AMG
2025 Championship Position	10th

* De Facto Team Principal. He does not hold the title officially.

2026 Alpine drivers

Pierre Gasly

Gasly enters his 10th season in F1 and 4th with the team, finishing 18th and scoring 100% of Alpine’s points in the 2025 season. The teams look to continue to rebuild around him as he has signed an extension until the end of the 2028 season. In a year of transition, he remains the cornerstone of the Alpine project.

Any success that Alpine has this year has to run through Gasly. The team will be looking to him to end up in the points on race weekends and push to make it to Q3 reliably. The new engine should help, but Gasly will need to push really hard this season if Alpine has a chance to push to the midfield.

Franco Colaptinto

Colapinto steps into the second seat as Alpine parts ways with Jack Doohan. The Argentine was promoted mid-season in May of 2025, where he took the reins starting in Imola. His season-best finish was 11th at the Dutch Grand Prix, showing growth and potential for the 22-year-old. Franco looks to prove himself this season and hopes to get an extension past the 2026 season.

This season, growth and potential will not be enough. He will need to earn points and earn them reliably. There is no world in which he can continue to ride on potential this season. If the production isn’t there, expect Alpine to replace him.

Alpine technical breakdown

For 2026 Alpine have swtiched from their own Renault power unit to running a customer Mercedes – AMG power unit, which has already resulted in big gains in testing. The car noticeably features a lower wing actuator that lowers the trailing edge of the movable section rather than raising the front. The New A526 also utilizes a centerline cooling concept similar to Mercedes with an A-shaped rollover structure. With Bahrain testing completed, the team was able to put together over 1000 laps across the full testing schedule.

Alpine looked excellent in pre-season testing, earning a sixth-place spot in our Pre-season Power Rankings. Gasly recorded one of the fastest lap times at Bahrain, and the car looks quick going into the season. Bahrain results don’t correlate with success in-season, but early vibes are positive about the car and the team.

Alpine leadership and personnel changes

Following a high turnover over the last few seasons, which included team principal Oliver Oakes resigning in early 2025, responsibility has now shifted to executive advisor Flavio Briatore. Flavio will work in conjunction with Steve Nielsen, managing director, and will oversee day-to-day operations at the Enstone factory. It’s worth noting that he does not hold the license to be a Team Principal officially, according to the FIA.

2026 Alpine performance expectations

As Alpine look to reset from a difficult 2026 with new regulations and engine partner, the team look to get back to the midfield after a rough 2025 season. The team will look to turn things around with some more consistent and reliable performances. On-track performance will hinge on how well the team has integrated the new power unit and how much they are able to extract from it. With the experience that Gasly brings, feedback and continuous improvement will be necessary as the team gets up to speed with the new car.

Key questions for Alpine going into the 2026 F1 season

1. How quickly can Alpine unlock the performance of the Mercedes power unit?

The switch from the old Renault engine will be a fresh start for the team, as they can turn their attention to other areas. The challenge with buying another team’s power unit is that there is less you can do with it, and it’s harder to integrate the full package, building the car and engine to work as one machine. That being said, if you’re going to buy a power unit this season, the Mercedes one seems like one of the more reliable ones to this point.

The early signs look positive out of Bahrain, but it’s a long season. Whether the car holds and whether the drivers can take advantage of it remains to be seen.

2. Has the team’s leadership and technical restructuring been the right decision or not?

Flavio Briatore is a controversial figure in Formula 1, best known for his role in Crashgate 2008. He is ruthless in his drive to win and cutthroat with his drivers and team. Can he lead Alpine up the standings, or is he destined to end up outside of F1 again?

Conclusion

After a season to forget, this is Alpine’s chance to reset and prove the critics wrong. It is now ever more important to start on the right foot early. With leadership changes and mid-season driver switches, the team look ahead for stability as they try to make their way back up. While outright wins remain highly unlikely, the goal is stability, consistent performance, and building momentum – with an eye on future seasons beyond 2026.