How Alpine found themselves in a ‘dreamland scenario’ in Brazil according to one team member

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Alpine have endured a difficult season in Formula 1 after taking a step back from last year and sitting in the midfield.

The French team were off the pace in the opening few rounds and locked out the back row of the grid at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Alpine have improved over the year despite a lot of changes off the circuit, including axing their engine department, re-hiring Flavio Briatore and appointing a new team principal in Oliver Oakes.

They capitalised on a chaotic day at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix to take a double podium finish, with Esteban Ocon in second place ahead of Pierre Gasly in third.

This was a significant result for the team after a lacklustre season, moving Alpine ahead of Haas, Visa Cash App RB and Williams into sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship.

Nate Saunders explained on the Unlapped podcast that one Alpine team member told him how the Enstone team got to the front of the field in Brazil.

Alpine felt ‘everything we did came off’ in the Sau Paulo Grand Prix

The Sao Paulo Grand Prix was a chaotic day where Lando Norris made critical errors which cost him in the title fight and Lewis Hamilton also had a difficult day.

It was very important to keep the car on the track and to manage the tyres effectively with only one grippy line on the newly resurfaced tarmac.

Alpine took a calculated risk to stay out at the end of the first stint when the rain intensified and necessitated a safety car intervention before Franco Colapinto caused a red flag.

READ MORE: Marc Priestley spotted ‘very difficult’ problem at Alpine during factory visit before Sao Paulo double-podium

Both Alpines and championship leader Max Verstappen changed their tyres under the red flag. This saved them time and moved the trio ahead of early leaders Norris and George Russell.

Saunders has now shared that one Alpine team member told him how they made very few errors over the race, which led Ocon and Gasly onto the Sao Paulo GP podium.

The journalist said: “I messaged one of them, actually, who I was speaking to after that race, and he said, ‘I can’t believe it. It’s like a dreamland scenario for us.’

“He said, ‘Everything we did just was perfect’. He said, ‘If you make 100 calls in a race, sometimes you expect 50 of them to come off well. Literally, everything we did from the beginning of that day to the end came off.'”

Alpine have a very difficult task in keeping sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship

Alpine sit sixth in the standings after their double podium at Interlagos but are just three points ahead of their nearest rivals Haas.

The American team have been significantly quicker than Alpine over the season and have begun a technical collaboration with Toyota.

Alpine’s team principal Oakes was also disappointed to see Verstappen take the lead of the race in Brazil, despite Ocon and Gasly securing a double podium.

There are now three rounds to go and Alpine may struggle next time out at the Las Vegas Grand Prix with their underpowered engine.