Alpine Endurance Team returns to the Circuit of the Americas this weekend for Lone Star Le Mans, the first of four remaining rounds in the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship. The team has been a regular presence at the sharp end of qualifying with the A424 but has yet to convert that single-lap speed into matching race results. Team principal Philippe Sinault says the target in Texas is clear: both cars inside the top five.

The 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship resumes after the summer break at the Circuit of the Americas, where Alpine Endurance Team lines up for Lone Star Le Mans with four rounds of the season still to run. The French manufacturer arrives with a car that has shown genuine front-running pace, and with a result column that does not yet reflect it.

Speed without the results to match

The most recent round in São Paulo summed up the season so far. Both Alpines reached Hyperpole at Interlagos for the first time, with Victor Martins qualifying third — 0.067 seconds off pole — and Charles Milesi fifth. In the race, the team says both cars were again able to run with the leaders, but differing strategies and two punctures ruled out a representative finish.

That pattern has repeated across the year. At least one A424 has made Hyperpole at every round to date. At Spa-Francorchamps the two cars set the first and third fastest times in qualifying and started together on the second row, while at Le Mans the #35 topped both qualifying and Hyperpole 1 before taking third on the grid.

A crowded Hypercar field

The context matters here. The Hypercar class fields 17 full-season entries from eight manufacturers, so Alpine is measuring itself against seven other major carmakers every weekend. Establishing itself among the quickest over a single lap in that company is a meaningful step for a programme still in its relatively early stages — but in endurance racing, grid position is only the opening argument.

Why Austin should suit the A424

The Circuit of the Americas asks for an unusually broad set of qualities. The steep climb to Turn 1 leads into a flowing opening sector that rewards aerodynamic downforce, before two long straights shift the emphasis to top speed and braking. The slower, more technical closing sections then demand a well-balanced car. Over 5.513 km (3.426 miles) and 20 corners, finding the right compromise counts for as much as outright pace.

Alpine has a useful reference point here. On the A424’s first visit to Austin in 2024, the #35 finished fifth for the model’s first WEC top-five result, with the #36 ninth — both cars in the points.

“We have shown in recent rounds that we have a strong technical and sporting package and the performance to fight at the front. The priority now is to turn that potential into results, and with four races remaining, there are still plenty of opportunities to do so.”

Sinault also pointed to the Texas heat as a complicating factor, saying the team will need to execute every detail correctly from the first practice session. “Our objective is clear: to put both cars in the top five and achieve a result that reflects our true level of performance,” he said.

Unchanged driver line-ups

Charles Milesi shares the #35 Alpine A424 with Austria’s Ferdinand Habsburg and Portugal’s António Félix da Costa. The #36 is run by the all-French trio of Jules Gounon, Frédéric Makowiecki and Victor Martins.

Facts: Alpine A424 at Lone Star Le Mans

  • Event: Lone Star Le Mans, round of the 2026 FIA WEC
  • Circuit: Circuit of the Americas, 5.513 km (3.426 miles), 20 turns
  • Race start: Sunday 6 September, 1:00 pm local time (8:00 pm CEST)
  • Hypercar entry: 17 full-season cars from eight manufacturers
  • #35: Charles Milesi, Ferdinand Habsburg, António Félix da Costa
  • #36: Jules Gounon, Frédéric Makowiecki, Victor Martins
  • Best previous Austin result: fifth (#35, 2024)

The race starts on Sunday 6 September at 1:00 pm local time, with live timing and results available via the championship’s official website.

Source: media.alpinecars.com