Ahead of Sao Paulo Grand Prix, Alpine were losing that fight but not really looking over their shoulders at the useless Sauber outfit.

Pierre Gasly gave Alpine hope that their latest round of improvements had helped them take a step forward when he scored the final point of the race in Mexico.

He further improved on that result in the Sprint race on Saturday after shining in qualifying, converting his P7 start into a P7 finish.

Next up was arguably the biggest race in Alpine’s history since its name change, which took place in torrential rain on Sunday afternoon at Interlagos.

Gasly and Esteban Ocon got an incredible two-three behind Max Verstappen after avoiding making mistakes during the race and getting his strategy right.

Marc Priestley spoke on his YouTube channel about Alpine after a visit to their factory in Enstone.

Flavio Briatore calculated how much money Alpine could potentially make of an incredible performance and Priestley shared the “very difficult” problem facing the team which will be eased slightly by events in Brazil.

Marc Priestley shares details of Alpine factory visit ahead of Brazilian Grand Prix podiums

Speaking about the French team, Priestley said: “I have to say a big thank you to Alpine.

“I was actually there at the factory this week and saw how difficult things have been for Alpine lately.

“So many different struggles and challenges that they’ve faced trying to keep people motivated at the grassroots and within this race team have been very difficult.

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“Today will be one of the biggest buzzes this team has ever had, incredible scenes.

“So I’m very happy for all these people, everyone on the track but also at the Enstone base, so really well done to them.”

Jolyon Palmer reserves special praise for Esteban Ocon after the Sao Paulo Grand Prix

Gasly and Ocon will go their separate ways at the end of the season, with Jack Doohan making his F1 debut in place of Ocon.

The 28-year-old heads to Haas to drive alongside Oliver Bearman and will be encouraged by the progress his new team is making.

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Haas has been at the top of Alpine all season and seems to have made considerable progress with each new improvement added to the car.

However, Alpine is now ahead of them in the standings with an extraordinary result that no one saw coming.

Jolyon Palmer named Ocon his driver of the day despite Verstappen’s commanding victory.

It’s hard to argue with his logic given the car Ocon was driving and the fact that at one point in the race he was pulling away from the Dutchman before the final safety car.

Unfortunately, he was unable to add to his only F1 victory so far, taken in Hungary in 2021.

However, both drivers have proven that with the right car and in the right conditions they are nothing short of world class and that will give those working at the factory something to celebrate, especially if Gasly stays with the team for 2025 and beyond.

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