BWT Alpine came away from the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix empty-handed, with Pierre Gasly 12th and Franco Colapinto 15th. The team says it simply lacked the pace to fight for points, and the barren afternoon has cost it fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship, dropping it behind Racing Bulls to sixth. Team principal Flavio Briatore is now pinning his hopes on upgrades due after the summer break.

BWT Alpine endured a difficult Sunday at the Hungaroring, finishing the last race before Formula One’s summer break without a single point. Pierre Gasly came home 12th, exactly where he started, while Franco Colapinto crossed the line 15th after starting 13th.

A race short on pace

Gasly began on new medium tyres and ran a three-stop strategy, pitting for new hards on lap 16 and again on lap 39, before switching to new softs on lap 55. His fastest lap was a 1:22.871. Colapinto, also starting on new mediums, made two stops for new hards, on laps 15 and 37, and set a best lap of 1:24.624.

Gasly said the team was never in contention. “Looking at the end result, as a team, we weren’t close enough to be in the fight for points and we lacked the pace to compete with the Racing Bulls or either Audi cars,” he said. He added that fresh tyre sets made little difference and that the current feeling in the car is poor. “We can only fix it ourselves by bringing more performance to the car,” Gasly said.

“We pushed and tried our best but it’s the reality of where we are at the moment, there’s no hiding from it,” Gasly said.

Colapinto described a frustrating afternoon in which his car went away from him early on. “After the first three laps, I started to struggle with the car and unfortunately, never really recovered,” he said, suggesting the balance and grip problems could point to damage the team still needs to investigate. He will stay in Hungary to take part in the Pirelli tyre test before heading into the break.

What it means for the championship

The zero-point result carries a cost. According to the team, Racing Bulls scoring with both cars again has lifted them above Alpine, who now sit sixth in the Constructors’ standings after previously holding fifth.

Briatore did not hide his disappointment. “Coming away from a race without scoring any points is disappointing, especially since we lost fifth position in the Constructors’ Championship,” he said, adding that rivals “have done a better job in this phase of the year.” He pointed to Aston Martin, cited by Colapinto too, as proof that a big step forward is possible.

The team says developments and upgrades are coming very soon, and both drivers framed the timing of the summer break as a chance to reset. “There’s still half of the season left and what matters most is where we finish at the final race,” Briatore said.

Next up: Zandvoort

Formula One now pauses for its mid-season break before resuming at Zandvoort for the Dutch Grand Prix, where Alpine hopes its promised upgrades will help it claw back the ground lost to Racing Bulls.

Source: media.alpinecars.com