WEC News: All eyes on Le Mans

Le Mans. Rare are the motorsport events that combine so much history, passion and high standards. Founded by Jean Rédélé in 1955, Alpine has written some of its finest chapters in the Sarthe. Competing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans as soon as 1963, the brand secured its maiden victory a year later before triumphing overall in 1978. Returning in 2013, it added three LMP2 wins to its tally before returning to the top class.

Sixty-three years after embarking on this journey with the M63, Alpine is set to close the Le Mans chapter of the A424. Since its debut in 2024, the programme has continued to mature. Reaching the Hyperpole from its debut Le Mans appearance, the French Hypercar endured a tough debut before securing a double top-ten finish the following year. Far from resting on their laurels, Les Bleus continued the painstaking work to unlock their full potential and won the 2025 6 Hours of Fuji.

Alpine Endurance Team now approaches its third outing at Le Mans in the Hypercar category with greater experience, understanding and ambitions.

Nevertheless, humility remains the order of the day in the face of this unique challenge. Combining permanent sections with public roads open to traffic the rest of the year over a distance of 13.626 kilometres, the Circuit de la Sarthe puts both machines and drivers to the test. Aware that finishing the race is always everyone's primary objective in the longest, toughest, and most prestigious race of the year, the team has prepared meticulously for this challenge.

Immediately after the TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps in early May, Alpine shifted its focus to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, conducting tests at Circuit Paul Ricard followed by a comprehensive overhaul of the two A424s. The team also carried out meticulous validation work during a final test run last week at Magny-Cours to ensure they are prepared for any eventuality, before setting up operations in the Sarthe region on Monday.

Before taking to the track, the French team will head to the traditional scrutineering in the city centre this Friday afternoon. A hugely popular kick-off to the festivities, where FIA and ACO officials will inspect the key components of each entered car and the crews' full equipment. This will be followed by a parade through the town on Saturday at 3.00 pm ahead of the Test Day on Sunday.

With a combined total of 36 starts at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the drivers will gradually find their bearings on the track. To do so, they will draw on their wealth of experience. In the #35 car, Charles Milesi and Ferdinand Habsburg won the LMP2 class together in 2021 before António Félix da Costa did the same the following year.

In the #36 car, Jules Gounon and 2022 GTE Pro winner Frédéric Makowiecki will share their valuable expertise with Victor Martins. As a rookie in the race, the Frenchman will follow the programme required of every debutant throughout this long week at Le Mans.

Once the Sunday running is over, the team will focus on analysing the data collected to fine-tune the setup, perfect pit stops, and optimise their use of the Michelin tyres before getting down to business. On Wednesday, the first free practice session will be followed immediately by qualifying. This year, the exercise has an added strategic element, as the top 15 will advance to Hyperpole 1, contested the following day with a different driver. The top ten will then qualify for Hyperpole 2, where the third member of each crew will attempt to secure pole.

After a final night-time run on Thursday and the drivers' parade in the city centre, Alpine Endurance Team will return to the track on Saturday morning for the warm-up. The 94th edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will start at 4.00 pm. For its final appearance with the A424, Alpine will embark on a 24-hour battle, aiming to convert three years of learning and progress into a solid result in an impressive 62-car field, including 18 Hypercars.

“It's always a source of pride to represent Alpine, a French manufacturer, at such an iconic event as the 24 Hours of Le Mans. We are all looking forward and excited to be here, but we also need to manage our energy and focus carefully throughout this ten-day marathon. The scrutineering will be the first step, with an opportunity to interact with the public before Test Day. This first day of action will be particularly important as it will allow us to understand the A424 in its 2026 specification on this track, following all the work done in recent months in preparation for this race. We've done a great deal of development and refinement with Le Mans in mind, and these two three-hour sessions will be essential for validating our technical choices, running as many kilometres as possible, and evaluating the three tyre compounds provided by Michelin. Victor Martins will also use this opportunity to keep developing in the top class and familiarise himself with all the ins and outs of this one-of-a-kind circuit. We therefore have an extremely busy programme. It would be a trap to look for absolute performance straight away. The aim is to be as certain as possible regarding our baseline setup by Sunday evening, whilst allowing our crews to find their bearings or gain the necessary experience to tackle the rest of the week with confidence. This will continue in free practice next Wednesday. The new qualifying format adds an extra strategic element, as all three drivers in a car may be called upon during the various sessions up to Hyperpole 2. This inevitably changes the approach, but we mustn't lose sight of the bigger picture. Our priority remains preparing for the race. From our opening laps on Sunday morning right through to the start next Saturday, every lap must, above all, serve our main objective: to be ready for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.”
Philippe Sinault, Team Principal Alpine Endurance Team

TIMETABLE (CEST)

Friday 5 June

16:15: Weigh-In #35 #36
17:10: Scrutineering #35
17:20: Scrutineering #36

Saturday 6 June

15:00-16:00: City centre procession

Sunday 7 June

10:00-13:00: Test Day
15:30-18.30: Test Day

Tuesday 9 June

14:00-15:15: Pit Stop Challenge
15:30-17:30: Autograph session

Wednesday 10 June

15:00-17:00: Free practice 1
19:30-20:00: Hypercar Qualifying
22:00-00:00: Free practice 2

Thursday 11 June