Like many other teams, Alpine did not actually show their official car in the launch, instead using a show car which had the upgraded livery.
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The Alpine F1 team officially unveiled their 2022 Formula 1 challenger, the A522, in a launch event on Monday (February 21).
The new car sports a noticeably different pink hue to go with their standard blue livery. This is due to the presence of new title sponsors BWT.
The company had previously sponsored Aston Martin but departed the team to join Alpine alongside new team principal Otmar Szafnauer.
Like many other teams, the Renault works team did not actually show their car in the launch. The car visible there was merely a show car which had the upgraded livery.
But the team did later release digital renders of the car, even as the real machines prepared for their shakedowns at Barcelona on Tuesday (February 22).
Are you in love? Because we are in love ?
? in the comments if you’re with us!#A522Launch pic.twitter.com/Ebr2dqzf8q
— BWT Alpine F1 Team (@AlpineF1Team) February 21, 2022
Interestingly, the team will run a different livery for the first two races of the season. At Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, the livery will be predominantly pink.
But for the rest of the season, the team will switch to the predominantly blue livery which has shades of pink.
This will no doubt give the cars an entirely fresh look. But the French-based team will be entering the new season hoping for an upturn in fortunes.
They will race with the same drivers – Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon – that drove their cars in the 2021 season. But the hopes will be for the team to be more consistent this season.
2021 was an interesting season for Alpine. It wasn’t a bad year and the team not only won a race with Ocon in Hungary, but also grabbed another podium finish at Qatar with Alonso.
That being said, there were certain circuits that saw their pace entirely disappear. And while they did finish fifth in the constructor’s championship, this was down almost as much to AlphaTauri being inconsistent.
Red Bull’s sister team had, on average, the fourth fastest car on the grid. Yet the struggles of rookie Yuki Tsunoda saw the team finish only sixth behind Alpine.
The Renault works team are now entering their seventh season back in the sport since taking over the former Lotus side. But aside from a fourth-place finish in 2018, they haven’t done much of note.
Having spent the last two seasons working on a new power unit while also planning for 2022, the hope will be that this is the year ‘El Plan’ – Alonso’s viral term for the team’s long-term ambitions – kick into high gear.
