Flavio Briatore has outlined his high expectations for Alpine in 2026, explaining that “this year is not for excuses” after they discounted last season in order to capitalise on the new regulations.
After a strong multi-year run of consistent midfield results, 2025 was a gruelling year for the team as they dropped to last place in the Teams’ Championship, earning just 22 points at the hands of Pierre Gasly while Franco Colapinto failed to score.
Briatore, who previously guided the squad to numerous titles under the Renault name, returned in 2024 as Executive Advisor and now covers the duties of a Team Principal alongside Managing Director Steve Nielsen, with the pair targeting a much improved season.
Asked at the A526 launch what he expects from the unchanged driver line-up, the Italian answered: “This is a difficult question, but I expect the best. You know, this year is not for excuses anymore. We have a brand new car and we have the same drivers.
“I promise Franco had a very good winter and I hope he gets much better results and he’s ready to compete with Pierre. We need two drivers competing. We need the performance of the driver.”
Alpine’s 2026 car was revealed in style onboard a cruise ship, marking what Briatore labelled “a new chapter” for the team after they dedicated the bulk of their resources to making their challenger the best it can possibly be.
Like the other 10 teams, they will have to adjust to the new regulations, but the Enstone outfit will face the added challenge of a different power unit as they become a Mercedes customer team.
Briatore appeared confident that, despite the widespread changes, Alpine are ready to compete at a high level once again, saying: “I promise everybody that this season will be fantastic. Before the first race, everybody’s world champion. After we go to Australia, we see where we are.
“It’s very difficult to see where we are. We need to see what happens in the first race, but we believe we are competitive. We have been working very well and our technical people have done a super job. Alpine has really come back in performance this year.”
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