Alpine, year I posted Alonso: His plan continues with an A523 with notable changes

In enstone you live in the year i post alonso. But you can’t talk about a new age. Despite the great novelty of the Spaniard’s departure and the signing of Pierre Gasley instead of accompanying the French as well Esteban Oconthe project of Alpine it is a pure continuation of the work done in 2023 and started in Asturian in 2022. The famous ‘Plano’ continues its course without Spanish. And that was more than clear this Friday when Alpine revealed in London, at a massive presentation in an old printing house turned event room and nightclub, his new car for the 2023 F1 season, the Alpine A523a single-seater with a seamless design that the French team wants to perfect with these amazing innovations.

Goal: Fourth place, closer to the top

Alpine presented its car with a very clear purpose that they did not hide. “We were fourth last year and we want to be fourth this year at the very least,” said Laurent Rossi, Alpine CEO. And also, they set the goal to “reduce the great distance that exists among the three best teams.” Both goals are those set by the president of the Renault Group, Luca de Meo, a few seconds before, and of which the drivers Ocon and Gasly, and the Team Principal Otmar Szafnauer are also sure. “We want to finish more races, with less dropouts and get more points”they all repeated.

And Gasly, a newcomer, is excited about the opportunity this team offers him, making sure that the goal must be “repeat fourth place constructors with more dominance” than last year. Team leaders recalled that the goal is to be at the top “for a long time” and this year they must take “one more step” in that journey. In that sense, they even dared to talk about podiums. “I hope Gasly and Ocon get two podium finishes,” De Meo said. “I had good results last year and we were always in the Top-10, but we want to improve and get closer to the top three”Esteban Ocon repeated.

A good base to evolve from

It’s no secret that the French team presented a good car concept last year, in the main of the current technical regulations. It’s not the fastest on the grid, but it’s a car capable of fighting with great weapons to rule the middle zone and be close to the top in a given race start. The evolutions came in the form of new sidepods in true Red Bull style, and since then, many new parts haven’t stopped teams like McLaren from surpassing them.

Ricciardo’s bad year gave wings to the French gave wings to the French to achieve fourth place in the Constructors’ World Championship with Alonso and Ocon, but the reaction of the Woking team sent a clear Alpine’s message for 2023: to continue fighting to rule the middle zone they need to continue to develop. That’s what they’ll try to do with a car that’s already been tested this week in a 100-kilometre shakedown at Silverstone and shows dramatic changes to its very philosophy.

Various novelties and a remarkable side step

The A523 has a thinner nosewith a the nose no longer protrudes over the spoiler, but it is embedded in it, joined in one piece to the last part of the front wing. The car retains Red Bull-style sidepods, with more refined side air inlets than last year. just above the sidepodssurprise some small gills, which joins the existing ones at the beginning of the sides of the engine hood, which is smaller this year. And just behind it, the biggest surprise of this car appears: a raising a step that forms an air channel that was already located last year, now bigger and enlarged because the car body has three main air passages: the side of the ground, redone, above the sidepods, with the same sidepod drop, and through this big step over the engine hood, ending this year without a shark fin.

That step makes the Alpine look impressive with its curvatures in the aerial view. In addition, it is necessary to emphasize how much the car is narrow, as well as its side air inlets on pontoons, more stylish. At first glance, the work and effort of the factory is more than obvious. Now we have to wait for the track to give judgment on his speed and position with respect to his rivals. It will begin to be known from February 23 to 25, during the Bahrien preseason tests.

So, the work done on this car with the aim of continuing to fight in the middle zone is clear, something that is complicated because of how much Aston Martin is expected to develop, the expected improvement of McLaren and the work that can be seen in the single – seats like Alfa Romeo or AlphaTauri.

Reliability, the main challenge from last year

Despite this, the biggest step Alpine has to make is in what is unseen. On the one hand, on the ground, since he himself said last year The boss of the French team, Otmar Szafnauer, “the most decisive piece is the floor”. This is the area that contributes the most downforce to the car and is the most fundamental. To know the first sensations about this piece and the rest of the package, we have to wait until next week, during the three days of F1 preseason testing (from February 23 to 25). That was certainly the great first litmus test of the first major aspect in which Alpine needs to go a step or two further than the rest: its engine’s reliability.

Last year, the team of enstone He suffered numerous durability failures in his engine which hit Fernando Alonso hard. Alpine He is sure he has solved his problems and is looking to finish more races without setbacks. The team has the most progress compared to other motorcyclists in this aspect and it will be important for their aspirations to achieve this. Here lies the goals that remain high. They want to dominate the central zone with more force, establish themselves as the fourth best team and surprise in the races where things happen.