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Alpine F1 Team

'Possible' for Alpine to mirror McLaren F1 growth

McLaren enjoyed a strong turnaround in form during last year's F1 campaign as it rapidly developed from a backmarker squad to a podium contender.

Mc Laren Alpine
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Alpine executive technical director David Sanchez admits it is possible for the French team to replicate McLaren's strong uptick in performance going forward.

McLaren began last year's F1 campaign towards the back of the field as it struggled for performance in the early stage of the season.

However, a significant upgrade package at the Austrian Grand Prix lifted it up the pecking order, placing it in a consistent position to fight for podiums.

McLaren has since enjoyed further development and has been in contention for victories at several rounds so far this year.

Alpine has also found an upturn in form of late having commenced the current campaign as one of the slowest teams on the grid.

As it continues to find its way back up the pecking order, Sanchez did not rule out the prospect of mirroring McLaren's spectacular rise.

“I think the step McLaren did last year is possible to reproduce,” Sanchez told media including RaingNews365

“The only difference I will say McLaren, is they changed dramatically their direction early in the season. 

“We seem to be changing our direction mid-season, so when you put the development cycle in perspective, they seemed to have arrived quite a bit before the summer break. 

“We will try and arrive a bit after the summer break.“

Alpine confirm 2025 F1 car changes

Alpine will undergo a number of changes next year, including its driver line-up with Esteban Ocon departing the squad.

Sanchez confirmed the car will also have conceptual alterations as it looks to improve on-track performance.

“For next year, that would be conceptual changes. We're talking about suspension, mostly. For this year, we're shifting a bit of focus on aerodynamics.

“I wouldn't say they are big concept changes because when you look at the car, it will look similar. 

“But when you look at the aerodynamic characteristics, they will tend to be some of them different, some of them just will be more powerful for performance.”

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