Seven weeks after the start of the season in Qatar, Alpine Endurance Team headed to Imola for the second race of the season.

 

 

Determined to bounce back at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Les Bleus put in three productive free practice sessions before entrusting qualifying duties to Charles Milesi and Mick Schumacher. Both drivers secured Alpine's first double appearance in the Hyperpole, with Mick Schumacher finishing sixth in the #36 car and Charles Milesi eighth in the #35 car.

 

 

Frédéric Makowiecki (#36) and Ferdinand Habsburg (#35) started the race on medium tyres. The two drivers were seventh and eighth before the Austrian was penalised for an infringement at the restart following a full course yellow. Later on, Ferdinand Habsburg was slowed as he had to drive through a gravel trap to avoid a collision with the #12 Cadillac and the #93 Peugeot.
Charles Milesi (#35) and Jules Gounon (#36) then took over. Jules Gounon moved up to fifth place thanks to a well-timed pit-stop. Meanwhile, Charles Milesi closed in on the top ten, ahead of the #12 Cadillac and the #99 Porsche on a track where overtaking opportunities are rare. Both drivers put in a doubled stint, and Jules Gounon made a successful overcut on the #50 Ferrari under increasingly cloudy skies.

 

 

Mick Schumacher (#36) and Paul-Loup Chatin (#35) began their stints in the Alpine A424s in seventh and eleventh place, respectively. After a safety car period, the German moved up to fifth place. Just as combative, Paul-Loup Chatin gained two positions before making a prolonged pit stop due to a problem requiring a rear bodywork change.

 

 

The length of the last two stints was calculated to maintain a good track position till the end of the race. Mick Schumacher left the pits for the last time in tenth position. In a thrilling 35-minute sprint finish, the #36 car moved up to third place with eight minutes to go after its rivals made their final pit stops to reach the finish line. The German driver was the fastest on track, allowing him to claim Alpine's first podium finish of the season. On a different strategy, the #35 car made a final pit stop with 13 minutes to go and finished 13th after a hectic race.

 

 

On the strength of this second podium finish for the A424 in the FIA World Endurance Championship, Alpine Endurance Team will head to Belgium in three weeks for the third round of the calendar, the TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (8-10 May).

 

 

#36 crew


Frédéric Makowiecki
"Whether in Qatar or here, I'm pleased with how we have worked to find more performance. We needed a strong race to validate the work we have done. We had a few tricky moments, but we were there when it mattered, with a better strategy than everyone else at the end. However, we must keep working hard, especially on the operational side. We made the right decisions at the right time in the final hours today We now need to do this throughout an entire race."

 

 

Jules Gounon
"This podium finish rewards all our hard work over the winter and underlines our progress with the tyres. We went on the soft tyres very early to put in quick out-laps on this track where track position is crucial. The neutralisations didn't help, but I managed to hold my position. The team's strategy was excellent at the end of the race, and Mick took full advantage of it. We now need to keep working to build momentum for the coming races."

 

 

Mick Schumacher
"It was a great race, and I'm really happy with the end result. The most important thing is to bring back good results and our strategy was key today, with a little help from a few incidents out front. We managed to pull off something we didn't believe quite possible at the start and we can be proud of our progress so far. Let's keep working hard to build on this momentum at Spa and Le Mans."

 

 

#36 crew


Ferdinand Habsburg
"It's a disappointing result for our crew, but our pace was as strong as our teammates who finished on the podium. Unfortunately, we made a few mistakes, and the gaps are so small that the smallest mistake can make all the difference. We need to focus on the positives and the fact that our package keeps improving. We still have a lot of work to do, and we need to use this result and the team spirit to make further strides forward."

 


Charles Milesi
"The result is somewhat disappointing for our crew given our starting position, but many things didn't go our way today. The positive point is that the performance was there, and we will work even harder to avoid making the same mistakes in the future."

 

 

Paul-Loup Chatin
"It's a frustrating result for us as we could have finished in the top five or even better. Motorsport is sometimes like that. We must commend the excellent performance of the sister car. They did a great job throughout the weekend and made no mistakes. They truly deserve this podium result."

 

 

Philippe Sinault, Team Principal Alpine Endurance Team
"We were determined to demonstrate our progress in understanding the car, and this race shows that the slightest mistake can be costly in a pure sprint, especially on a circuit where track position is so important. The first few hours didn't go quite as we wanted. We got back into contention by opting for soft tyres on an increasingly cool track. Towards the end, we opted for different strategies to cover all scenarios. We were aggressive with car #36, favouring two short stints rather than a long one followed by a very short one at the end of the race. Everything fell into place, allowing us to push without compromising our tyres. It was a great team effort that rewarded the entire team's work We must enjoy this result, but we must also learn certain lessons to make even more progress in the long term."

 

 

Nicolas Lapierre, Sporting Director Alpine Endurance Team
"We can be thrilled to be on the podium in only the season's second round. It was a tremendously competitive race on an atypical circuit where overtaking is extremely difficult. Therefore, strategy and track position were critical, and the team did well in these areas. The #36 car had a flawless race to finish on the podium, while the #35 car lost ground with a penalty and a few mistakes. Overall, it's a positive result as we look ahead to Spa. We know that we still need to improve in many areas."



CLASSIFICATIONS


6 Hours of Imola


1. Ferrari AF Corse n°51
3. Alpine Elf Endurance Team n°36
13. Alpine Elf Endurance Team n°35


FIA Hypercar World Endurance Drivers Championship
1. Calado / Giovinazzi / Pier Guidi – 50 points
8. Gounon / Makowiecki / Schumacher – 15 points
14. Chatin / Habsburg / Milesi – 0 point


FIA Hypercar World Endurance Manufacturer’s Championship
1. Ferrari – 92 points
4. Alpine – 15 points