“Not that ugly pink anymore please,” Fans react as Alpine F1 announce car launch date
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Alpine driver Pierre Gasly at the post-season Abu Dhabi Test in December
Alpine has become the fourth F1 team to announce their 2023 car’s launch date. The French team has dubbed their car the ‘A523’, following their tradition since the rebrand in 2021, when it launched its first car under the Alpine name as the ‘A521’. Fans will be able to catch a preview of Alpine’s new challenger on February 16 in London, 2 days after Ferrari will launch their own.
The A523 will be driven by the French duo of Esteban Ocon and the new arrival Pierre Gasly. The team took a step up from 2021 to 2022, and it’ll be interesting to see if they can continue their upward trend next season. Still, it’s rather unlikely that they’ll be able to join the top three right away – the gap is far too large. But they surely have an opportunity to make progress.
The French manufacturer have been stuck in the midfield for quite a few years now, obviously, they have larger ambitions. With their 2023 car, they’ll hope to make a step forward towards achieving their future goals. They at least have a chance to cut down the gap between them and the top three teams, ad maybe put a bit of distance between themselves and those behind, such as McLaren. Fans are excited at the prospect, and to see how the car will look in comparison to the others.
Fans react to the Alpine car launch date announcement
The top comment was obviously from Alpine driver Esteban Ocon, and it was a rather simple exclamation. One fan even went as far as to suggest (perhaps ironically, but you never can tell) that his title charge in 2023 is going to be ‘scary’ for other teams.
Then there was a whole host of screenshots of the Oscar Piastri announcement. Alpine had announced that they were promoting the Australian in the recently vacated seat for 2023, but he came out and denied that, alleging that they had done so without his consent. A long battle ensued, ultimately ending him moving ship to McLaren. It doesn’t seem like fans will ever get enough of mocking them for that.
A fan also pointed out a rather amusing coincidence.
Then there were more ‘sincere’ reactions. Esteban Ocon wasn’t the only one excited, and his particular choice of words was echoed by some fans in the replies. Others also expressed their delight.
Will this joke ever grow old?
Some fans had their own requests from Alpine, especially regarding the color of the livery.
It is rather curious that a French team, with French drivers, will launch their car in London instead. Yes, they compete with the French flag – but their chassis and managerial side is based in Enstone in England. The engine side is based in Paris. Some fans pointed it out why they were launching their car in England and not France.
The teams that have announced the launch dates for their 2023 cars, as of January 04, are:
| Team | Date |
| AlphaTauri | February 11 |
| Aston Martin | February 13 |
| Ferrari | February 14 |
| Alpine | February 16 |
In case you missed it:
- “Nobody was seeing us anywhere above eighth position”: Alpine Boss Laurent Rossi describes the horrors of their initial 2022 woes
- “I know they like to sell this story,” Pierre Gasly blames the media for spreading fear about his rivalry with Alpine Teammate Esteban Ocon
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Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)