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AlphaTauri has kicked off a busy week of Formula 1 launches by unveiling its 2022 car, with a revised livery.
Red Bull’s sister team has been a podium finisher in each of the past three seasons as it has climbed the midfield ranks.
The 2022 regulations are a big test of what AlphaTauri can achieve in F1’s budget cap era, using its mix of in-house design and development and purchasing certain parts from Red Bull Racing.
That means the AT03 has Red Bull’s gearbox, rear suspension and hydraulics, as well as the Red Bull Powertrains-badged, Honda-developed engines.
This car has also been designed using Red Bull’s state-of-the-art windtunnel, which AlphaTauri is now sharing – and has finally switched from a 50% scale model to 60%.
It is the last team to make that transition, having designed the 2021 car in the old windtunnel but developed it using the new one, getting the learning process out of the way before development of the AT03 began in earnest.
“It is a completely new era for F1 and we hope that this package will be very strong, following last year’s success,” team boss Franz Tost said.
AlphaTauri has evolved its navy blue and white colour scheme since its rebrand in the image of the company’s fashion label.
Otherwise, this team carries a familiar feel into 2022, with continuity on the driver side.
Lead driver Pierre Gasly was among the six fastest qualifiers 16 times in 22 races last year, and occasionally ahead of the Ferraris and McLarens.
Another strong season will likely put him in contention for a Red Bull Racing seat again, even though the senior team has appeared unwilling to bring him back after his disappointing half-season in 2019.
“This year sees a huge change to the car as, due to the new regulations, the look and design is completely different, so the team has had to start from a clean sheet of paper,” Gasly said.
“We won’t know the true performance of the AT03 until we get it out on track at pre-season testing in Barcelona but so far, I think it looks great and I am very excited to get this new season started!”
Team-mate Yuki Tsunoda has a more pressing challenge this year, as it was his tough rookie season in 2021 that meant AlphaTauri failed to make the most of its competitive car and slipped into – then lost – a battle for fifth in the championship with Alpine.
But that wasn’t entirely on Tsunoda as AlphaTauri needs to make a step forward operationally this year.
It has shown it can be consistently quick, but to fulfil its potential in 2022 it must also consistently get the results.
