Alpine completed the A526’s first on‑track shakedown at a wet Silverstone. Pierre Gasly drove laps in heavy rain as the team ran system checks and packaging validation rather than performance runs. The filming day was limited to 200 km, giving Alpine early mileage ahead of formal testing. The outing, attended by figures including Flavio Briatore and Franco Colapinto, made Alpine the fourth team to put a 2026 car on track after Audi, Cadillac and Racing Bulls.

Video and close-up photos showed the car in a livery similar to 2025 and revealed several visual and aerodynamic changes versus the A525: a reconfigured rear fin behind the airbox, removed wheel brows, revised front‑wing endplates and covered cooling vents above the sidepods. Alpine did not officially confirm the car’s identity.

Separately, Alpine ran a TPC session in Barcelona using its 2025 car as a final shake‑down. Gasly, Franco Colapinto and reserve driver Paul Aron shared running in a short “wake‑up” outing. The team said the session was preparatory for the closed‑door five‑day pre‑season test in Barcelona, scheduled for Jan 26–30. With teams limited to three testing days each, Alpine portrayed the TPC run and the Silverstone filming as complementary steps to validate systems and power‑unit packaging ahead of the full test programme.

Alpine is scheduled to unveil the A526 livery on Jan 23, the same day Ferrari plans its reveal.

The shakedown was Alpine’s first running with Mercedes power units after parent company Renault ended its in‑house works programme, formally making Alpine a Mercedes customer for 2026. The team is targeting a rebound from a difficult 2025 campaign: it finished last in the constructors’ standings with 22 points after halting A525 development in early June to focus on the 2026 regulations. Alpine ended the year 58 points behind ninth‑placed Sauber (now competing as Audi). Gasly said he is focused on pure pace and has been working over the winter to find any advantage.

Sources