Alpine Drivers Feel Team is “On Good Trajectory” for Le Mans

Paul-Loup Chatin and Mick Schumacher are upbeat about Alpine’s progress as it looks towards its second 24 Hours of Le Mans with the A424, as the team aims to carry its two-race podium streak into the FIA World Endurance Championship blue riband.

Alpine has finished on the overall podium in two out of the first three WEC races of the season, with the No. 36 car driven by Schumacher, Frederic Makowiecki and Jules Gounon finishing second in Imola and third at Spa.

The French marque currently occupies the same fourth place in the manufacturers’ standings that it scored last year, but has made a significant leap in terms of the drivers’ championship, with the No. 36 crew sitting fifth in the standings on 30 points, considerably higher than the 11th place achieved by Ferdinand Habsburg last year.

Chatin missed out on a podium at Spa, finishing eighth after a race in which the No. 35 car he shares with Habsburg and Charles Milesi had to pit for fuel late on and incurred an early penalty for speeding under Full Course Yellow.

Despite that, the Frenchman was hopeful looking ahead to Alpine’s home race at Le Mans, saying that the brand can now “fight with the others” in WEC’s tight Hypercar field.

“What matters is that the car is [getting] better and better,” Chatin told Sportscar365. “I think now we are capable [of playing] for some really good results, to fight with the others, to beat some really strong teams. It’s really good for Le Mans.

“I think we are in a good trajectory to have a good car at Le Mans, and the team is getting better race after race, which is really good.”

Last year’s edition of the French endurance classic proved to be the low point of Alpine’s maiden LMDh campaign, as turbo-related engine failures resulted in a double retirement for the pair of A424s at around quarter-distance.

Almost one year on, Schumacher spoke highly of Alpine’s improved form in its sophomore season with the A424, noting the team’s learnings from year one have helped it to form a much more solid operational base compared to 2024.

“I think we’re having that consistency in it and I think we’re coming to events much more prepared now compared to last year,” Schumacher told Sportscar365.

“Obviously we had the experience of last year, so that helps, but I think what’s very positive is we’re starting off the weekend being very close to the final set up that we’re racing in.

“That makes our life a lot easier and makes it much more simple for the program itself.

“The cars are obviously always the same. We’re not having any big updates, especially not on the outside. It’s always just jokers or whatever. So in this case, we really know what to expect from the car. We know what we’re getting.

“We’re going into the weekend with a much clearer structure of set up, team positioning and what we want to do with the time that we have.”