renault f1 2023 Page 296

“Renault F1” in 2023 was running under the Alpine banner, and the A523 spent the season oscillating between plucky midfield hero and “who unplugged the turbo?”. Esteban Ocon nicked a brilliant podium in Monaco, and Pierre Gasly matched it at Zandvoort—proof the thing had sparkle when the stars aligned. Most weekends, though, Alpine lived in P6 limbo and ultimately finished sixth in the Constructors’ standings. The car’s party tricks were decent high-speed balance and tyre care; its party fouls were reliability wobbles and efficiency that let rivals breeze past. The Renault hybrid unit did the job but wasn’t the class benchmark. Flashes of blue lightning, yes; full-blown storm, not quite.