BWT Alpine F1 Team revealed its contender for the 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship today in the city of lights, and Renault Group hometown, Paris. The A522 boasts a striking livery, with a stylish combination of the historic blue of Alpine and iconic pink colours of title partner BWT.
Read the press release
“The Alpine name belongs in Formula 1. Passion, innovation and excellence are values that perfectly align with our vision for the brand. Formula 1 also captures the attention of millions worldwide. So, being present in the competition gives Alpine a huge echo. Last season, we experienced magical emotions with Alpine’s first Grand Prix victory in Hungary. This moment will forever be etched in legend. That winning feeling only fuels the hunger to taste further victories. Laurent is doing a great job to guide the team in this exciting journey to the top. Myself and all at Renault Group are very much looking forward to following closely Alpine’s intended on-track success.”
“It’s with great pleasure that we launch our A522 to the world today, marking the next chapter in Alpine’s Formula 1 journey. We are proud racers and have poured the essence of Alpine’s racing heritage and passion into this new generation of car. We have a clear plan and vision in place at Alpine and we have some of the best people in the business to help drive us forward and realise our ambitions. We are going in the right direction and we want to carry on our climb to the summit.”
Luca de Meo first started out his career at Renault and is now CEO, Renault Group. During his many years experience working for major European companies, he acquired much sought-after experience in the automotive industry and in management. He took over the helm of Renault Group in July 2020.
Laurent begins his second year at the helm of Alpine, remaining the figurehead of both the car brand and its Formula 1 operation. Born in 1975, in Corsica, Laurent took a keen interest in engineering, motorsport and Formula 1 from a young age. An engineer by trade, Laurent holds a Master of Science in Fluid Mechanics from ENSEEIHT (Toulouse) and a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering / Automotive Engines & Petroleum Products from IFP School (Paris). He began his career at Groupe Renault in 2000 as Project Leader in the Powertrain Division. Laurent then moved to the USA to obtain an MBA from Harvard Business School, which he achieved in 2009, and was then recruited to work for the Boston Consulting Group in New York as Project Leader, specialising in automobiles. Laurent remained in America, joining Google in 2012 as Global Accounts Business Manager, leading business relations with key accounts in the automotive industry. By 2018, Laurent returned to Europe and to Paris, to again work for Groupe Renault in Strategy and Business Development, becoming Chief Strategy Officer in April 2018. With the Alpine name joining the Formula 1 grid ahead of the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season, Laurent was appointed CEO of Alpine in January of that year, tasked with developing the car brand’s exclusive and innovative line-up, making it profitable by 2025, as well as leveraging its involvement in motorsport.
Otmar signed with BWT Alpine F1 Team in February 2022 as Team Principal reporting to Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi. The Romanian-born American started his motorsport career in 1989 when he became Racing Programmes Manager for Ford. Whilst working for Ford he attended the Jim Russell Racing Driver School, where he had a brief stint as a driver in Formula Ford and Formula 2000 Otmar began his Formula 1 journey in 1998 as British American Racing’s (BAR) first Operations Director. He then became Honda’s Vice President of Racing Developments and a member of the Management Board for the Honda F1 Team. Otmar remained in Formula 1 and joined Force India in 2009, overseeing the team’s rise from finishing ninth in the Championship in 2009 to regular top five efforts from 2015: finishing fourth in 2016 and 2017. Most recently, the 57-year-old led the team through its rebrands to Racing Point in 2019 and 2020 and Aston Martin in 2021, before signing for Alpine prior to the 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.
Esteban Ocon begins his third season with the team ahead of the 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season. This season will be Esteban’s fifth full-time campaign in Formula 1, which he enters on the back of experiencing his first victory in Formula 1 last year. Esteban is well known to the Enstone-Viry family having spent the 2016 season as the team’s Reserve Driver, and, prior to that, was part of the Lotus junior programme during which he won the FIA European Formula 3 title in 2014. A year later Esteban won the GP3 Series crown. The 25-year-old has started 89 Grands Prix and accumulated 272 points during that time since making his Formula 1 debut as a teenager at the Belgian Grand Prix in 2016. His best qualifying performance to date remains his superb third place in Belgium in 2018, while his best race result is his stunning debut victory at the Hungaroring last August.
As Technical Director, Matt takes responsibility for delivering performance and experiments to the track, structuring the technical organisation and processes, plus growing talents and teams. He oversees chassis technical direction, bringing to the team his unique experience in Chassis/PU technical integration and trade-off. Matt joined the team in September 2018 as Deputy Chief Designer before moving to Engineering Director. He signed with over 18 years of experience in powertrain design and implementation. Matt’s first taste for engineering began at Ricardo, an automotive business specialising in a range of market sectors including passenger car, commercial vehicles, rail and clean energy. He then moved to Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains as Engineering Team Leader – remaining in that position for 11 years – before becoming Head of Powertrain Integration and Transmission Design for Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team between 2011 and 2018.
Oscar Piastri begins 2022 as Alpine F1 Team’s Reserve Driver on the back of his stunning FIA Formula 2 Championship win last year. Born in Melbourne, Australia, Oscar has caught the eye in the junior racing ranks over recent years, having won three consecutive championships across Formula Renault Eurocup, FIA Formula 3 and last year, FIA Formula 2. Since beginning his single seater career in 2017 in British Formula 4, the young Australian has racked up 21 wins, 16 pole positions, 21 fastest laps and 46 podiums across four different levels of racing. In his Reserve Driver role, Oscar will assist the team at Grands Prix, contribute to the team’s development on the simulator at Enstone and enjoy an extensive test programme in the race winning A521 Formula 1 car.
