F1 Boss Promises His Struggling Team's 2026 Season 'Will Be Fantastic'

Certain constructors will be content coming into the upcoming season, either having had a successful 2025 or a car that looks strong in 2026.

McLaren are in the former category, storming to the constructors' title at the Singapore Grand Prix last September, while Mercedes are rumored to have an extremely fast car according to Max Verstappen.

But certain teams, such as Haas and Audi, will not want slow starts to 2026 as they look to improve on their 2025 positions, in which they were towards the bottom. New boys Cadillac, meanwhile, will want to impress in their first-ever season.

And Alpine has signaled its ambition to propel itself up the grid, with its team principal confident that things will get much better in the year ahead compared to the one gone by.

Flavio Briatore backs Alpine for improved year if drivers perform

Alpine revealed their 2026 livery earlier today, with an iconic blue and pink tone. | BWT Alpine F1 Team

Alpine managed just 22 points across the 24 races of the 2025 season, with only one driver contributing to that total. Pierre Gasly, Franco Colapinto and Jack Doohan all represented the French team, but Gasly was the only one to score.

Upgrades stopped on the car 'early on' in 2025, according to Gasly, with the team focusing on 2026 before any other constructor could. And Flavio Briatore, the de facto team principal for the Enstone-based squad, believes their fate rests on whether his drivers can deliver.

"I expect the best. You know, this year is not for excuses anymore. We have a brand new car and we have the same drivers... We need two drivers competing. We need the performance of the driver[s]."
Briatore on Gasly and Colapinto

The struggles of Colapinto compared to Gasly were frequently noted throughout 2025, with Gasly outscoring Colapinto 13-5 across the 18 qualifying sessions they contested together. Jack Doohan, who Colapinto replaced after the Miami Grand Prix, went 1-5 vs. Gasly in qualifying and, similar to his Argentine replacement, also never scored any points in the pink and blue.

MORE: Alpine Launches F1 Season After Silverstone Livery 'Leak'

Franco Colapinto moved from Williams to Alpine's reserve role for 2025, before becoming their second driver six races in. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Briatore's words on where the car stands should motivate Gasly and Colapinto then, with the Italian remarking that the hard work put in over the past few months has the team feeling much more confident.

"We need to see what happens in the first race, but we believe we are competitive. We have been working very well and our technical people have done a super job. Alpine has really come back in performance this year.”
Briatore

“I promise everybody that this season will be fantastic. Before the first race, everybody’s world champion. After we go to Australia, we see where we are."

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