Motorsports
Alonso waited a year and a half for the new Alpine A522 in hopes of returning to the top
Two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso said the main reason for his return to the sport last year was the hope that this year’s radical redesign of the cars with the new regulations will give him the opportunity to compete in the GPs again.
The white livery of this year’s Formula 1 cars gave all teams the opportunity to start the 2022 season in exactly the same place as Mercedes and Red Bull Racing, reducing the distance they have enjoyed from the two protagonists of the sport in recent years separated .
Alpine has another reason for optimism: the conversion of the Renault engine to split-turbo technology invented by Mercedes in 2014 has since made it invincible in the hybrid era of Formula 1.
In short, this technology entails separating the turbo into two parts, placing each part on either side of the V of the six-cylinder internal combustion engine, and placing the MGU-H electric motor in the closed corner of the V.
All of this is connected to the same shaft that rotates at up to 120,000 rpm. The advantages are extremely important not only in terms of performance, but also in terms of space planning, since the compact dimensions of the engine free up significant space for aerodynamics.
Of course, the youth of Renault’s new powerplant can lead to significant reliability issues, particularly with the strength of the V-axle shaft, but Alpine CEO Lauren Rossi said his mission to the team is to push for maximum engine performance, regardless of each reliability issues.
All of this makes Fernando Alonso very optimistic for the coming season, which starts on March 20 in Bahrain: “2021 was a good year for us. Esteban (Okon) got a win, I got back on the podium and somehow the performance continued Renault starting in 2020. I feel like we’ve made significant progress, the team is stronger than we were 12 months ago and we’re ready for this year’s challenge.”said the Spaniard.
When asked if the new regulations will change the balance at the top, the 40-year-old billionaire world champion (2005-’06) with the same team, then called Renault, said: “Hopefully. I came back to the sport because of these regulations, so I’ve been waiting for these cars for a year and a half. I think the team did a great job making this car last year, so we’re all very motivated.
We won’t know what level everyone is at ahead of the Bahrain race, but we’re excited for the first car tests we’ll be conducting this week. “I hope the new regulations work and we have closer battles on track this year.” concluded the Spaniard.
On the sidelines of yesterday’s presentation of the new Alpine A522, the French team announced that the car will be painted entirely pink for the first two races of the 2022 season to please its new main sponsor, then from the third it will also return in its signature blue and the pink in the lateral airways of the A522.
Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.