The F1 wing changes helping Alpine target Mercedes

The form has come as the result of a pretty intensive development push this season that has helped Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon keep bringing home the points – and even the occasional real stand out performance.

Ocon’s top five finish in Austria, and Alonso’s charge from the back of the grid that could have netted him sixth, is proof of the potential in the A522, and has lifted optimism for the next races.

The pace at the Red Bull Ring was helped by a new rear wing, which has built on the selection of four different downforce options it has already run so far this season.

This new design seemingly sits between the medium and high downforce offerings it has already used.

The fact that Alpine has chosen yet another iteration is perhaps indicative of the solid gains it has made, especially when the different versions as twinned with the beam wing.

Whereas previously Alpine had favoured a flatter mainplane design, it opted for a deeper central section and shallower outer portion (upper of the two in the image below).

This has also resulted in the modification of the outer section of the upper flap and endplate transition, with the cutout altered quite considerably as a consequence (see yellow line to compare).

Alpine has also joined Alfa Romeo in the use of a teardrop-shaped DRS pivot (circled), which like its rival also has a section of the pivot mounted on the flap side, meaning there’s a shut line that runs through it.

This means that when DRS is deployed some of the teardrop shaped pivot lifts up with the flap

Back to back push

Alpine had a significant upgrade package available for the previous race at Silverstone, the centrepiece of which was a redesign of its sidepod bodywork.

At the front of the sidepod, the undercut has been increased, as the team wrap the bodywork even tighter than before.

The upper bodywork of the sidepod has taken on the bathtub-like crevice in the upper surface that Ferrari has employed with the F1-75 since the start of the season. 

Where Alpine has built in a little more versatility is in regards to the cooling gills, as seen when comparing its setup at the last two races.

At Silverstone it utilised gills that followed the contours of the upper surface of the sidepod crevice, whereas at the Red Bull Ring these were absent. The panel, on the now higher rounded shoulder above, has more apertures with which to reject the heat created within.

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