Alpine Endurance Team lines up at Monza for the final round of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship, its last race before the brand ends its endurance programme. To mark the moment, the Le Mans-winning Renault Alpine A442B from 1978 will be shown alongside the current Alpine A424 Hypercar. After this weekend, Alpine’s motorsport effort will focus on Formula One.

Alpine says it wants to race hard right to the end of its last FIA World Endurance Championship weekend. At Monza, the season finale will also serve as a farewell to an endurance chapter that has run for more than a decade with partner Signatech.

As part of that tribute, the French brand is pairing two cars from very different eras. The Renault Alpine A442B, which won the 24 Hours of Le Mans outright in 1978, will be shown with the Alpine A424 Hypercar that Alpine races in the championship today. The company describes them as two milestones in one racing history. The technology and the challenges differ, but the competitive spirit is the same.

From Dieppe to Le Mans glory

Jean Rédélé founded Alpine in 1955, and competition has been central to the brand ever since, from rally stages to endurance circuits. Alpine first raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1963. Early results came in the efficiency and performance indices, along with several class wins.

The big result came in 1978, when Jean-Pierre Jaussaud and Didier Pironi drove the A442B to overall victory at Le Mans. Alpine also points out that it ended its endurance programme that year to focus on Formula One. The company presents this as proof that motorsport programmes end and can later start again.

The Signatech years

Alpine came back to endurance racing in 2013 with Signatech, the team run by Philippe Sinault. The partnership won back-to-back European Le Mans Series titles in 2013 and 2014. It then moved up to the World Endurance Championship, where it won LMP2 world titles in 2016 and 2018–2019. Over the same period it took three LMP2 class wins at Le Mans, in 2016, 2018 and 2019.

The team finished on the overall Le Mans podium in 2021 and won outright at Sebring and Monza in 2022. The A424 arrived in 2024 as Alpine’s entry in the top Hypercar class. It scored its first podium at Fuji that year and returned to the same circuit in 2025 for its first win.

The 2026 season has brought more good results so far. In Austin, Alpine finished on the podium and placed both cars in the top five. At the 6 Hours of Fuji, the two cars came home second and fourth.

One last race in blue

According to Alpine, the focus at Monza stays on the race itself, with the #35 and #36 A424 crews aiming to end the year with a strong result. The A442B and A424 will be shown together alongside the race programme as a thank-you to everyone who has worked on and supported the project.

“Bringing the A442B and A424 together at Monza is a powerful reminder of the passion for motorsport and how it can evolve. We can be proud of the achievements, the expertise and, above all, the people who have shaped this chapter.” — Axel Plasse, VP Alpine Tech

Plasse added: “Our priority this weekend is to honour their contribution through our performance on track. This chapter closes, with the same spirit as ever.”

Team principal Philippe Sinault calls the weekend the team’s “Last Dance in Blue” and says: “our ambitions are higher than ever. We are all determined to shine and to make our Alpine A424 shine once again.”

What it means

Alpine announced in February that it would end its WEC programme after 2026. The company says the decision comes from prioritising its projects and investment to support long-term development, with its motorsport strategy now focused on the FIA Formula One World Championship. Monza is therefore the A424’s last race in Alpine’s hands for now, and it leaves the Hypercar class with one less manufacturer.

Monza is the final round of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship and the last scheduled race for Alpine Endurance Team.

Source: media.alpinecars.com