Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto left Shanghai with points but mixed feelings after the Chinese Grand Prix, each taking positives amid frustration.
Gasly finished sixth, adding eight points and scoring his best result since the 2025 British Grand Prix. He said he was pleased with the result but disappointed to have missed out on fifth, which he felt was within reach before the Safety Car. Gasly explained he had been competitive all weekend — seventh in Sprint Qualifying and seventh in Qualifying — and had the pace to fight the leading midfield runners. He lost some ground mid-race while battling a Haas and Max Verstappen, and conceded Ollie Bearman pulled away. Still, Gasly called the outing a “fantastic result for the team” and noted Alpine have the speed to contest those positions regularly.
Colapinto scored his first point since the 2024 United States Grand Prix, finishing 10th. The Argentinian said the race was “tricky” and that contact with Esteban Ocon — after Colapinto took a wide line through Turns 1–2 and Ocon clipped the Alpine’s right‑rear — cost him two places. Despite the incident and feeling unlucky at times, he described the race as fun and ultimately positive, highlighting the progress from a poor start to a strong finish and underlining the value of the points for the team.
Alpine’s switch last season to focus on the 2026 car and adopt the new Mercedes power unit appears to be paying off. The team sit seventh in the standings and are only a couple of points shy of Red Bull and Racing Bulls, reflecting improved competitiveness early in the year. The intra‑midfield rivalry — notably between Gasly and Bearman and the ongoing Alpine‑Haas tussles — looks set to be a recurring storyline as the season progresses.