Oliver Oakes claims Alpine have ‘performance to come’ as late season upgrades arrive

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Alpine started the 2024 season as the slowest and heaviest car on the grid, but have managed to turn their year around slowly but surely.

The French outfit have improved from having both cars knocked out in 19th and 20th at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, to being able to compete for points at most races now.

There’s still a lot of work to do, but they have shown signs of getting back to where they need and expect to be.

Williams recently overtook them for eighth in the constructors’ standings, but they have upgrades on the way which should help them end the season on a better note.

Oliver Oakes says Alpine will bring upgrades to final rounds

There is still a quarter of the season to go, and arguably, Alpine could find themselves as high as sixth in the constructors’ after Abu Dhabi.

They need to outscore Visa Cash App RB by 21 points over the last six races, Haas by 18 points and Williams by three to achieve the feat.

Team principal Oliver Oakes is hopeful about their progress and wants to show more pace before the end of the season.

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“We were late bringing what we brought from some of the beginning of the season and then you end up a bit out of sync when others have brought stuff.

“I hope between now and the end of the year we can at least show we’ve got some performance to come.”

Alpine set for changes in 2025

Alpine have had the same driver line-up for two seasons, with Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly behind the wheel of their cars.

That duo will be no more after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, as Ocon moves to Haas and leaves the team he has been with for five seasons.

Gasly will continue alongside rookie Jack Doohan, who has conducted a few tests and completed a lot of simulator work over the years.

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They will hope to be in contention for points at every race weekend next year, which is something they had become used to in previous seasons.

But for 2026, it looks as though they might have a new engine, with a report stating that they are set to become a customer team in the future.