Double top ten and Sweet 16 for BWT Alpine F1 Team in enthralling Belgian Grand Prix

Fernando had finished sixth at the chequered flag, but with Charles Leclerc’s post-race penalty, the Spaniard was promoted to fifth to take 10 points. Esteban enjoyed a superb, overtaking-dominated display, as he progressed from sixteenth to seventh for his six points.

Fernando made a fast start from third on the grid to leap to second before colliding with Lewis Hamilton into Les Combes. Fortunately, minimal damage was sustained to his A522 and he was able to continue the race. Esteban made a sensible start and did well to stay out of trouble as he made moves towards the points-scoring positions.

Both drivers were on a two-stop strategy – Fernando with two stints on Mediums before switching to Hards – with Esteban on a Medium-Hard-Medium plan.

Esteban made two double overtakes – one into the final chicane – the other in the closing stages of the race on Sebastian Vettel and Pierre Gasly into Les Combes to jump from ninth to seventh.

The team remains fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, passing the 100-point mark on 115 points heading into the second race of the triple header next weekend in Zandvoort.

Esteban Ocon, started P16, finished P7: “What a way to wrap up what’s been a fantastic weekend for the team. The car was fast, and I personally had a lot of fun out there racing today, especially with those double overtakes. Well done to the team for their work this weekend, we can all be proud of ourselves. I was feeling confident all race and the car felt great and who knows what could’ve happened if we had started further up the road! We leave Spa satisfied, knowing it was a job well done, as well as a good haul of points for the team to extend our fourth position in the Constructors’ Championship. Bring on Zandvoort.”

Fernando Alonso, started P3, finished P5: “I am happy with the result today with fifth place. Our performance shows that we are consistently ahead in the midfield. It’s clear that when we execute our races well, these are the results we can expect to score. We were also handed a little gift with the penalty to Charles [Leclerc] at the end, but we’ll take it. The incident with Lewis [Hamilton] was also unfortunate, but it’s a racing incident and the car seemed fine despite the contact. We can look back and be very pleased with our weekend here with more points scored in both championships as we look ahead to Zandvoort next.”

Otmar Szafnauer, Team Principal: “We can be exceptionally pleased with our performance in today’s race. Taking a sweet sixteen points after starting from third and sixteenth on the grid is a very good effort and certainly deserved. It was a busy race for the drivers who did well to come away unscathed after an entertaining opening few laps. Fernando was unfortunate to collide with Lewis [Hamilton] on the opening lap and it was lucky he did not sustain too much damage. Esteban too had to be sensible to take advantage of some opportunities in front, which allowed him to push towards the points-scoring positions. It was great to see both of our drivers enjoying some brilliant wheel to wheel racing at times and it was equally pleasing to see some fantastic overtakes throughout. It’s been another brilliant event for the fans who will enjoy returning to Belgium next year, which is very good news for Formula 1. We’ll reflect on today’s race, assess where we can continue to improve, and head to Zandvoort ready to do it all over again!”