Alpine hoping to build upon Renault strengths in debut season

Alpine

Alpine hoping to build upon Renault strengths in debut season

Alpine revealed the A521 virtually on Tuesday

Ewan Gale

Tuesday 2 March 2021 18:58

Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi has stated the team's new car will aim to build upon the "fundamentals" of last season's Renault RS20 despite the new name.

The first F1 car under the French brand's moniker was revealed virtually, with a largely similar look to last year's challenger - although in striking red, white and metallic blue colours - despite relative freedom to change aerodynamic designs without spending development tokens.

Rossi, who has taken the reigns of the team over the winter, explained some of the changes that had been made ahead of the season but stressed the importance of building upon the foundations set last year.

"It is an exciting moment, a new journey for Alpine as well as for me," said Rossi.

"The A521 chassis is based on the fundamentals of the RS20 chassis, in particular, the strengths that allowed us to finish on the podium three times last season and score 181 points in the championship.

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"The team has made a number of changes to the chassis to comply with technical regulations and maintain competitiveness. On the engine side, the one-year delay to the new regulations means we will be using an evolution to our RE20A unit.

"There are a few developments to the powertrain and we have worked specifically to ensure optimum performance and reliability."

F1's regulations have stipulated that downforce must be cut this season due to the delay to the new aerodynamic formula until next season, with a redesign of floor structures amongst the key changes this year.

Chassis technical director Pat Fry echoed Rossi's explanation, stating the technical team has had to work around the homologated parts on the car that were cemented mid-way through last year.

"This year’s car is a logical development from 2020, with us looking to improve on the aerodynamic performance while working around the structures that have been homologated between this year and last," Fry added.

"There are a few things that look a little different, but it’s an evolution rather than revolution."