Alpine Elf Endurance Team enjoys a productive Prologue at Sebring 13.03.2023: Alpine Elf Endurance Team officially launched its new FIA World Endurance Championship campaign this weekend. The Prologue allowed the six A-arrowed brand drivers to get back behind the wheel of the Alpine A470 at Sebring International Raceway.

    Alpine Elf Endurance Team officially launched its new FIA World Endurance Championship campaign this weekend.


    The Prologue allowed the six A-arrowed brand drivers to get back behind the wheel of the Alpine A470 at Sebring International Raceway.


    With more than 2,800 kilometres covered, the team now turns its focus to the opening race of the calendar this Friday on the same track.




The 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship season began this weekend with the Prologue. Held at Sebring (United States), this first meeting, or dress rehearsal, reunited all the competitors for the first time this year during two days of testing.



Alpine Elf Endurance Team used the four sessions to continue its preparations. André Negrão, Memo Rojas and Olli Caldwell in the #35 Alpine A470 and Matthieu Vaxiviere, Charles Milesi and Julien Canal in the #36 car all aimed to gather as much information as possible about one of the cradles of American motorsport.



On Saturday morning, André Negrão and Matthieu Vaxiviere were the first to tackle this mission on the 6,019-metre-long circuit before being relayed by their teammates. Despite a clutch hose problem quickly resolved on the #35 car, all six drivers got to grips with the Florida track while working on the set-up and use of the Goodyear tyres.



With more than 100 laps completed with each prototype at the end of day one, the team continued its intense programme on Sunday. Alternating short and long stints without focusing on pure performance, the two trios accumulated data and lowered their reference times courtesy of Matthieu Vaxiviere and André Negrão.



In the final session, a red flag cut short the Prologue as the team prepared to run a qualifying simulation. Nevertheless, Les Bleus finished with 479 laps to their credit, or more than 2,800 kilometres on a daunting track for mechanics and organisms alike with its numerous bumps and junctions between different surfaces.



Alpine Elf Endurance Team is now focusing on its final round of preparations, including a complete overhaul of the Alpine A470s. The two crews will return to the track on Wednesday towards their first challenge, the opening round of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship season, the 1000 Miles of Sebring.

 


 

Prologue – Sebring 2023

1. United Autosports n°22 1:50.577s
2. Team WRT n°41 1:50.827s
3. Prema Racing n°63 1:50.860s
7. Alpine Elf Endurance Team n°36 1:51.286s
12. Alpine Elf Endurance Team n°35 1:52.457s

 


By the numbers

Alpine Elf Endurance Team n°35


Session 1 : 11th in 1:53.209s (33 laps)
Session 2 : 11th in 1:53.149s (68 laps)
Session 3 : 12th in 1:53.230s (72 laps)
Session 4 : 12th in 1:52.228s (54 laps)
Laps: 227 (André Negrão: 83; Olli Caldwell: 73; Memo Rojas: 71)



Alpine Elf Endurance Team n°36

Session 1 : 10th in 1:53.158s (59 laps)
Session 2 : 8th in 1:52.210s (53 laps)
Session 3 : 6th in 1:51.286s (81 laps)
Session 4 : 4th in 1:51.513s (59 laps)
Laps: 252 (Matthieu Vaxiviere: 97; Charles Milesi: 78; Julien Canal: 77)

 


Orianne Tamburini, India de Seignard de la Fressange- photos Alpine