Mar.2 (GMM) Alpine is pursuing a noticeably different solution to Formula 1’s new active rear wing regulations – a bold move following the team’s disastrous 2025 campaign.
While most of the grid has adopted a conventional system that simply “opens” rear wing elements on the straights to reduce drag, Alpine’s AMR26 instead uses a folding concept, with the wing elements effectively collapsing in straight-line mode.
Team principal Steve Nielsen admitted the approach carries risk precisely because no other team has chosen it.
“Of course,” he said when asked if the unique direction makes the team nervous. “It would probably be better to answer that later in the season. But when you’ve had a year like we had last year, you hold on to what you learned.”
Alpine endured a bruising 2025 season, prompting a reset in philosophy under the new active aero era, which replaces DRS with a fully integrated drag-reduction system affecting both front and rear wings.
Nielsen insisted that different does not automatically mean wrong.
“Just because something is unusual doesn’t mean it’s wrong,” he said. “It’s an obvious difference – but whether it’s a good or bad direction, who nkows.”
The Enstone based outfit is not locked into the concept, however. Nielsen confirmed the team is closely studying rival solutions.
“We evaluate everything, absolutely everything, including what we see on other cars. If we see something, we model it and try to reproduce it.”
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