SK Exclusive: “We are up with Ferrari and Red Bull” - In conversation with Alpine F1 team principal Otmar Szafnauer

Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer spoke to Sportskeeda before the 2022 Miami GP as his team prepared themselves for the new circuit. While the Enstone-based team prepared for a tough weekend ahead, the American-Romanian team principal had a candid chat over the Miami race weekend and spoke about his expectations from the team for the year.

So how have you liked Miami so far?

“I love it here... It’s such a diversity of people here, a bit of Latin culture but you’re in America. It’s really cool. I think because of it we are appropriately placed. Racing in Miami should be a lot of fans.”

How has the move from Silverstone to Enstone been so far?

“So Enstone, the name is shorter more efficient, Silverstone is long, its 12 miles from my house, that was 27 miles (Silverstone). But those weren’t the reasons why I moved. I love the Enstone team, a lot of very experienced people here who have been here for a long time. They have a tradition of winning here, they have won world championships from Enstone as well as Viry, and a very good infrastructure and the right number of people to do well. So it’s just a matter of continuing to improve the on-track performance at a higher rate than our competition and that’s what we are focused on doing.”

Speaking of competition, McLaren has bounced back in the last two races. In terms of your rivals, where do you expect Alpine to finish?

“We still have to push for finishing fourth. We have to fight McLaren if they are there and they truly are back for that fourth position. We’ve got the three traditional guys in first second and third, Ferrari, Red Bull, and Mercedes. Even though Mercedes aren’t performing as they use to be, I think they’re still second in the championship. They’ve scored good points, they look a little better here, for example like in FP1 and FP2. So for us, the target is fourth in the constructors’ championships, best of the rest, which is definitely achievable.”

If you look at Fernando Alonso's performance in Australia, it is evident that if the Alpine car is in the perfect window, it gives the front-runners a tough time? What is that perfect window and how do you replicate it?

“So, you know, over a lap we’ve done a really good job, and even in some of the races, it’s just we were plagued a little bit by reliability issues when Fernando [Alonso] was running in quite good positions and just couldn’t finish the race. And unfortunately, even in the last race, he qualified very well but Mick Schumacher ran into him and that was the end of the race. So, he has had a bit of bad luck. Esteban [Ocon], on the other hand, has managed to score in all but one race. And the race he didn’t score in, he had bad luck. He had a gearbox problem which set him to 19th in the sprint race. He then made up only a few positions because it is hard to pass in the sprint race when it’s only a few laps. And starting 16th (in the main race in Imola) was always going to be difficult. So, we’ve got to do a little bit better job on reliability. I think it’s not really the car performance that has let us down, it’s just the reliability niggles. But we’ve gotten on top of that.”

When it comes to the Alpine power unit, Bruno Famin had said that it was a success. What are the other areas where you can make a difference?

“The power unit is frozen now till 2026, four years. So, it is what it is. And we have to work in the areas that we have full control over, that we can differentiate ourselves in. And that is aerodynamic development, chassis, car development, making sure the drivers are on top form, they got to drive the thing as well. And in those areas, there are a lot of sub-areas that we have to understand better and start optimising and that’s what we are working out.”

At the moment, where do you think you have the extra edge over your rivals?

“For us, I think, our one-lap pace is among the best, sometimes we are up with Ferrari and Red Bull. I think that area in qualifying, we are pretty good.”

Do you think there will be more consistency in the future in the one-lap performance, or is it track-specific?

“I think we are going to be decent in all tracks, some tracks better than others. But over the season what we have to do is, continually develop the car, especially aerodynamically, at a higher rate than our competitors. If we can do that, then we can get that consistency that you speak of.”

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Alpine team principal believes the team can provide Fernando Alonso with a winning car

Otmar Szafnauer had previously told the Spanish publication AS that Alpine would eventually provide him with a winning car. Upon being probed by Sportskeeda about the same, the Enstone team chief was coy about answering the question but agreed to the idea.

In Imola, Fernando Alonso tried a new floor. What do we expect here? What are the updates/changes on the car in Miami?

“That same new floor will be on both cars here, with a new beam wing as well on both cars.”

Miami is a low-downforce circuit. When it comes to your overall car performance around here, do you think it has suited Alpine's car? Can your package be optimized well here and does the track offer more opportunities for mid-field teams?

“I’ll know more after qualifying. I think teams have moved around a bit here.”

What are your expectations for Alpine from this whole weekend?

“My expectations for us is to get both of them into Q3, so already starting the race in the points, and then move up and score as many points as we can. That’s our objective.”

You’ve said before that Alpine will provide Fernando Alonso with a winning car. So do you still stick to that? And will we see him win sooner?

“I never said that. However, I will stick to that, whoever said it.”

Although Szafnauer hoped for both cars to qualify into Q3, Esteban Ocon’s crash made him start the race 20th, from where he recovered to an eighth-place finish. Fernando Alonso, however, was running ninth in the race when a five-second time penalty dropped him outside the points. While the Miami weekend did not go as planned for Alpine, it is understood from Szafnauer's words that they might have the potential to lead the midfield if they improve their car.

Although Szafnauer mentioned the upgrades the team brought to Miami, it has now confirmed that it is bringing more upgrades to the Barcelona race. Alpine is currently sixth in the constructors' championship and aims for higher.