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Alpine F1 Fires Back at Fan AccusationsNurPhoto - Getty Images
Alpine has angrily criticized “completely unfounded” accusations that it is favoring Pierre Gasly over Franco Colapinto in Formula 1 this year.
Alpine’s upturn in performance has facilitated Gasly scoring at each event in 2026, taking 15 points, while Colapinto has taken one point, achieved in China.
Colapinto endured a low-key time in Japan, finishing 16th after qualifying adrift of Gasly, who classified seventh.
On Thursday Alpine published an open letter to ‘clarify the concern of some fans regarding parity between our cars.’
The team outlined that on occasion certain components are fast-tracked but stressed “Pierre and Franco have been running with the same equipment, barring some low-performance impacting parts in China due to switching gearbox components.”
“Franco is our driver and the team has placed its trust in him, just as he has with the team. That is an indication of the commitment we have to Franco and his place in the team with equal footing alongside Pierre.
“Any questions about sabotage or not giving Franco the same car are completely unfounded, which is why the team felt the need to speak out.
“It’s absolutely not in the team’s interests to not score points and any suggestion of self-sabotage isn’t conducive to that ultimate end goal. From the opening races, the team finds itself in a strong position and the team is not counting on its laurels and is staying grounded. At the last two races, the team has been the fourth fastest car and we know we have to work incredibly hard to stay there and have two cars regularly in with a chance of scoring points.
“Pierre and Franco regularly come to each other’s desks in the engineering office to share data and feedback. As a team, we’re fortunate to have someone of Pierre’s experience and, as can be seen from his performances in the first few races, he’s a class act and can perform at an incredibly high level on a consistent basis.
“The engineering group is very much united and all pulling in the same direction. That includes both Pierre and Franco. There’s no withholding of information or keeping performance tricks hidden away.”
Alpine also moved to condemn the social media abuse directed at Colapinto, following his accident with Oliver Bearman in Japan, and towards former driver Esteban Ocon post-China, after the Frenchman’s clash with Colapinto.
“The team condemns the hateful messages aimed towards Franco after last weekend’s race in Japan, the same way it condemns the abuse and threats that were aimed towards Esteban Ocon following a collision between the two cars at the Chinese Grand Prix,” read the letter.
“The two drivers were racing hard and fighting for position and Esteban took full responsibility and apologised to Franco, actively seeking him out in the media pen and also apologising on social media. The resulting abuse that followed was not in the spirit of the sport and was an oversight not to call it out sooner. Abuse of any kind to all drivers is unacceptable and it was especially disappointing that it comes from a minority of fans of the team towards a driver who has given so much to the team in the past and is a Grand Prix winner for Alpine.
“Subsequently, the team also condemns the hateful behaviour towards Franco following the incident with Ollie at Suzuka. First of all, the most important thing is the safety and wellbeing of the drivers and thankfully Ollie is OK. The closing speeds are a characteristic of these cars and as stated by the FIA, it’s something that will be closely reviewed in the coming weeks.”
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