How it began

The Enstone team has gone by several names. Its story begins with Toleman, an outfit from Witney in Oxfordshire that raced in the championship from 1981. In 1986 it was bought by Benetton Group, and from that season the team was called Benetton: it ran its first race under that name at the Brazilian Grand Prix on 23 March 1986, and Gerhard Berger brought its first win at the Mexican Grand Prix on 12 October 1986.

In 1992 the team moved from Witney to nearby Enstone, where it remains to this day. For decades its engines were built in France, at Viry-Châtillon, where Renault had been making championship engines since the 1970s: on 1 July 1979 Jean-Pierre Jabouille gave the marque its first win at the French Grand Prix in Dijon.

Titles and eras

The first titles came in the Benetton years: Michael Schumacher was world champion in 1994 and 1995, and in 1995 the team also won the Constructors’ Championship, ahead of Williams. In 2000 it was bought by Renault, which had been supplying its engines, and from the 2002 season the team raced as the Renault works team. Fernando Alonso brought its first win in that guise at the Hungarian Grand Prix on 24 August 2003.

The second championship era was 2005 and 2006: Alonso was world champion twice, and both times Renault won the Constructors’ Championship. Alonso also brought the last wins under the Renault name, at the Singapore Grand Prix on 28 September 2008 and the Japanese Grand Prix on 12 October 2008.

Lotus and Renault’s return

Once a controlling stake had passed to the investment firm Genii Capital, the team raced as Lotus from the 2012 season, without leaving Enstone. In that period Kimi Räikkönen won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 4 November 2012 and the Australian Grand Prix on 17 March 2013, and the team finished fourth in 2013.

Ahead of the 2016 season Renault bought the team back and restored its works status. The first podium after the return did not come until the Eifel Grand Prix on 11 October 2020, where Daniel Ricciardo finished third; at the Sakhir Grand Prix on 6 December 2020 Esteban Ocon was second.

As Alpine

Since the 2021 season the team has carried the name Alpine, Renault’s sports car brand, founded by Jean Rédélé in 1955; the brand’s home is Dieppe in Normandy. The team ran its first race under the new name at the Bahrain Grand Prix on 28 March 2021, and Esteban Ocon brought its first win at the Hungarian Grand Prix on 1 August 2021. That same season Fernando Alonso returned to the team: at the Qatar Grand Prix on 21 November 2021 he finished third. The team finished 2022 fourth — its best result as Alpine — after which Alonso left for Aston Martin.

In 2023 the team’s drivers were Ocon and Pierre Gasly: Ocon was third at the Monaco Grand Prix on 28 May 2023, and Gasly third at the Dutch Grand Prix on 27 August 2023. On 21 June 2024 Flavio Briatore, who had run the team in its championship years as Benetton and Renault, returned as executive adviser, and from July 2024 Oliver Oakes was team principal. At the São Paulo Grand Prix on 3 November 2024 Ocon and Gasly finished second and third.

On 30 September 2024 the team announced that it would close its own engine programme at Viry-Châtillon after the 2025 season, and on 12 November 2024 it signed a deal with Mercedes for power units and gearboxes from 2026 until at least the end of 2030. On 6 May 2025 Oakes resigned and Briatore took charge; from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on 18 May 2025 Franco Colapinto took Jack Doohan’s seat. The team finished the 2025 season last, with all of its points scored by Gasly.

2026 season

Alpine started 2026 with Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto in the A526, powered by Mercedes instead of Renault; the team’s managing director is Steve Nielsen and its executive adviser is Flavio Briatore. The regulations are new for everyone: about half of the power comes from the electrical side, and the aerodynamics have become active.

Gasly scored the first points of the year with tenth place at the Australian Grand Prix on 8 March 2026, and finished sixth in Shanghai on 15 March 2026. Colapinto scored his first points of the year in that same race on 15 March 2026, finishing tenth, and was sixth at the Canadian Grand Prix on 24 May 2026. At the Italian Grand Prix on 6 September 2026 Gasly started from the pole he had won in qualifying the day before and finished seventh.