The 2024 Formula 1 season got off to a difficult start for Alpine.
But that very same season is setting up for an incredible finish.
The team began the year at the back of the grid, as Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly locked out the back row for the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix. However marked improvement has been the story of their final half of the season, and that same duo delivered a stunning double-podium result at the São Paulo Grand Prix. With Ocon finishing second and Gasly third in the Grand Prix — and Gasly adding two more points thanks to a seventh-place finish in the F1 Sprint Race in Brazil, the team vaulted into sixth in the F1 Constructors’ Championship, coming up all the way from ninth.
Now the team is primed for another solid result at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, thanks to a strong qualifying session from both drivers. Ocon advanced to Q2 and just missed out on Q3, and is set to start in P11.
“On my side, I am very happy with the lap in Qualifying today and, though it is a pity that we missed out on Q3 by just a tenth of a second, we will be starting in eleventh, which puts us in a position to try and fight for points,” said Ocon following qualifying in the team’s media report. “It will be interesting to see how tire degradation will play into the results of the race tomorrow. Hopefully it will open up the door to some good opportunities for us to move forward. We struggled a bit with traction and grip in the sessions today, but we are working hard to improve, and we will give it everything tomorrow to keep the tires alive and maximise any opportunity that comes our way. We did it last year from further back on the grid so we have confidence we can come away with a good team result.”
However, the major story was Gasly’s performance. He stormed into Q3 and when dust finally settled late Friday night in Las Vegas Gasly was in the second row and will start third, right behind pole sitter George Russell.
“I’m very happy to qualify in the top three today,” said Gasly. “The lap felt incredible and it was one of those when you cross the line and you know that everything was thrown at it. I never imagined that we would be in the top three, though, that was a surprise. This track is all about fine margins and it’s tricky with the low downforce with a lot of sliding but I just had a lot of fun out there too. We had one set of new Softs for Q3 so it was kind of a last lap shot, plenty of adrenaline, and I’m just pleased we put it together.
“Tomorrow, we will give it everything but we know where our fight is. It’s a tough race for tire degradation and graining. We have to stay on top of it as last year at this race it cost us. We’ve worked hard as a team to understand it and there is more hard work tonight to prepare ourselves. We will go for it tomorrow with the target of taking some points.”
Team Principal Oliver Oakes, who joined the team during the summer break, paid tribute to both drivers and hailed Gasly’s “perfect” performance.
“From the get-go this weekend we have looked competitive, especially in these cooler conditions,” began Oakes. But the field is so competitive, and the gaps are so tight, you never know where you’re going to stack up until you get into Qualifying. Pierre did a perfect job to put the car on the second row and it puts us in a strong position for tomorrow’s race. It’s encouraging to again reach Q3 for a fourth time in a row, but we know anything can happen in the race and the points are handed out tomorrow. “With Esteban just missing out on the final part of Qualifying in eleventh place, our goal is to get both cars in the points tomorrow. Similar to last year, we expect the conditions will be tricky with the lower temperatures and tyre management, so we need to analyse how we can get the most out of our strategy.”
The São Paulo Grand Prix propelled Alpine into P6 in the Constructors’ Championship.
Another “perfect” night in Las Vegas could see them take a big step toward staying there.