Alpine forced to end Barcelona F1 testing early after car fire

Alpine gave its new A522 car its on-track debut in a filming day on Monday before the start of pre-season testing in Barcelona on Tuesday.

But the team’s running came to a premature end on Friday after Fernando Alonso was forced to stop his car on-track, with plumes of smoke being spotted coming out of the car.

Alpine has now revealed that the fire at the back of the car was caused by an issue with its hydraulics, and the required repairs mean it will take no further part in the remainder of the day.

“After further investigations in the garage following Fernando Alonso’s on-track stoppage earlier this morning, the team can confirm the issue was a problem with the hydraulics,” a statement from Alpine reads.

“A minor sealing issue led to a fire in the back of the car. The team has successfully completed 266 laps during the three days of the Barcelona shakedown.

“Repairs on the car will continue, and as a result we won’t be running for the remainder of the day. We look forward to be back in action at the next test in Bahrain.”

Fernando Alonso, Alpine F1 Team

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

The issue comes as a setback for Alpine during an important time to get in mileage following the change in the regulations for 2022 and the new aerodynamic concepts.

Alonso completed just 12 laps on Friday morning before the problem forced him to stop, taking his final tally to 141 for the three-day test. Alpine had sat third overall on the mileage chart after the opening two days of running, trailing only Ferrari and AlphaTauri.

The mishap denied Esteban Ocon the chance to get in some more laps during the afternoon session, which was due to take place on a wet track to aid Pirelli with its tyre development.

Alpine will return to the track with Alonso and Ocon at the Bahrain test, which takes place from 10-12 March, ahead of the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix on 20 March.