This weekend will be the third time that we’ve returned with Esteban to the scene of our memorable victory in the 2021 Hungarian GP.

 

On that amazing afternoon at the Hungaroring a combination of an opportunity presenting itself and a faultless performance by driver and crew earned the team its first win under the Alpine name in Formula 1. Going back to the venue always recalls special memories for everyone involved.

 

“Of course, at the very least we can have a bit of a joke about it, and use it as a confidence booster,” says Esteban’s race engineer Josh Peckett.

 

“It's almost entirely the same crew of people as well still working with us on his car, and it's nice to be able to sit there and think that we managed to achieve something that's gone down in the history books as an unexpected win."


“I'd like to think that Esteban can look at it in the same way as well, and think about it as a good time and a positive. It's so easy to get blindsided by the races that haven't gone well. So the times that they did are very important, I think."

 

Esteban and the then Renault team had enjoyed a special moment at the end of 2020 when he finished second in the Sakhir GP in Bahrain. That momentum carried into the new season, the first under the Alpine name.

 

Esteban qualified sixth in Portugal and then fifth in Spain, and he scored points five times in the first 10 races. However no one could have predicted what happened at round 11 in Hungary.

 

On the Saturday Esteban qualified a respectable eighth, his best position since Barcelona, while Fernando was immediately behind him in ninth.

 

Rain prior to Sunday’s race created some uncertainty. As possible scenarios were discussed before the race the focus was on the short-term rather than how things might pan out over 70 laps.

 

"It's one of those circuits where the weather can be very up and down,” says Josh. “And when you're starting in that kind of relatively midfield position, it's as much about just hoping you make it around the first corner as anything else!

“All eyes, at least from my perspective, tend to be on the weather and what you're anticipating in those first few laps, and making sure everyone's organised and ready to do those basic things such as having the right tyres for the right conditions."

 

Circumstances would tip in Esteban’s favour off the startline. Under braking for Turn 1 Valtteri Bottas lost control of his Mercedes on the wet track, triggering an accident that would also involve Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez.

 

Esteban was watching that unfold in front of him when Lance Stroll appeared on his right and sailed across his bows and into Charles Leclerc. As others were obliged to run wide to avoid the chaos Esteban hugged the inside line and emerged from the mess in second place, with only pole man Lewis Hamilton up ahead.

 

"I think probably initially it's about trying to work out if we've actually been touched or made contact at all,” says Josh. “Trying to work out if we have any damage, checking we haven't got any punctures. Then it’s that kind of slight moment of disbelief that not only have you made it through scattering of cars, but you're six places further forwards!

 

“Realising that we actually made it through was probably the biggest thing. You're kind of just waiting at that point to see what happens. And then the red flag came out pretty quickly, and everything settled down again.”

 

With the race suspended the cars were lined up in the pitlane, with Esteban parked in second spot behind Hamilton.

When the resumption came Esteban followed the safety car and Hamilton out of the pit exit to prepare for a second standing start. Everyone was still on intermediate tyres, but it was clear that the track was “completely dry”, as Esteban told the pit wall.

 

“I’ll get back to you shortly,” Josh replied. As the leaders neared the pit entry Hamilton stayed out on track to head to his pole spot on the grid, but Esteban received the clear instruction, “Box, box, box.”

 

He gave up the chance to start from second on the grid and peeled into the pitlane. Every single car behind followed suit, leaving Hamilton sitting on the grid on his own.

 

"Obviously there were a lot of people involved in that discussion,” says Josh. “We realised that inters were in no way suitable anymore, we would have lost so much so quickly that it didn't matter whether you were second or 10th or 20th, you were better off getting onto that dry tyre quickly.”

 

The mechanics did a great job with the change to slicks and Esteban got down to the end of the pitlane at the front of the queue. As Hamilton passed the pit exit the green light allowed Esteban to accelerate away, although George Russell jumped the queue and briefly nipped past into second before dropping back at the request of the FIA.

 

When Hamilton made the inevitable stop for tyres Josh gave the message, “OK Esteban, you are now leading the Grand Prix…”

“It hadn't happened up until that point for me,” Josh recalls. “So it's then the realisation of we need to try and keep this up for 70 laps! Daunting is the only way to describe it, trying to work out how.

 

“You're only doing the same as you would normally do. It's just the fact that you're right at the front, which none of us really expected. But the processes of us managing the car and everything else were all exactly the same. Just it felt like it took an awful lot longer than that it normally does…"

 

Along with Esteban the biggest beneficiary of the first corner chaos was Aston Martin’s Sebatian Vettel, who from 10th on the grid now ran second. The four-time World Champion would spend the entire race shadowing Esteban, while Josh kept his driver informed about the gap. It was crucial to stay over a second clear and thus not give Vettel the benefit of DRS.

 

"One of the things I'm most impressed about with Esteban is the fact that in those situations, he just drives impeccably,” says Josh. “When the pressure is on, he drives better.

 

“Most people could so easily have put a wheel ever so slightly in the wrong place. He managed it very well. He said afterwards that there was still pace in hand at certain periods.”

 

The timing of the pit stops was crucial, and it was Vettel who came in first. When Esteban stopped a lap later he re-emerged still just in front of his German rival.

 

"Vettel was just slightly delayed, just enough that we kept in front,” says Josh. “Normally the undercut is reasonably powerful there, so we were quite fortunate with the fact that we kept the lead. I think it would have been a much trickier situation had Vettel’s stop been normal.

 

“Esteban did absolutely everything he needed to, and so did the mechanics, they delivered a belter of a stop for us as well, which is exactly what we needed, and at the right time."

 

There was also a bigger picture to consider. While Hamilton had lost time by having to stop at the end of lap 1, he had good pace, and was working his way through the field. The big question was could he eventually catch the leaders? The numbers suggested that he might.

 

Josh explains: “From the trackers and the race traces that we look at, it was evident that Hamilton was going to get pretty close to the front, if not to the front, although there was a lot that he had to get through in order to do that.”

However we had Fernando Alonso, who did a brilliant job of delaying the progress of the Mercedes driver.

 

"I think that was recognised fairly early on in the discussions that we had to keep Fernando in a position where he could help defend as well,” says Josh. “I'm pretty convinced it was the main reason that Esteban won.

 

“If Fernando hadn't done that, Lewis would have been much closer, the best part of 10 laps earlier. Although Esteban would have been able to defend to a degree himself, and Vettel as well, it would have been a whole lot harder. Fernando helped us out a lot there. It was pretty clear we were going to be up against it if that didn't happen."

 

As the laps ticked away Josh kept Esteban informed of the gap to Vettel as well as giving him all the regular race homework to do, such as adjusting switch settings, and lifting and coasting.

 

When the last lap finally rolled around Esteban was still just ahead of Vettel – who would eventually be disqualified for not having enough fuel for an FIA sample – and only 2.7 seconds clear of Hamilton.

 

His first win was so overwhelming that Esteban missed Josh’s instruction to head into the pitlane to the top three Parc Fermé at the end of the slowing down lap, obliging him to trundle down the empty straight and park by the pit exit.

 

"I can't blame him, he wasn't really concentrating at that point!,” smiles Josh. “It was just a very surreal moment. I'd not experienced it in F1 before, and I wasn't really sure what to think. I remember someone slapping me on the back so hard my head nearly hit the monitor in front of me!

 

“Everyone was excited. It was the first win that we've had for a while, and it was just a bit of a lift that everyone needed. We'd had reasonable results, but to actually get that win was good for everyone, not just at the track, but in the factory as well.

 

“My biggest regret is the fact that we had to then go straight to the airport, and we didn't really celebrate at all…"

 

Josh would get a similar buzz when Esteban finished third in Monaco last year, their third podium finish together.

 

"It's just following the processes that we always follow,” says Josh. “There's nothing different that particularly that happens on those events. As far as the team goes, I think we do a very good job. And I think that to capitalise on those times when you can get a result out of it by doing the job as well as you can is what we target doing.

 

“Until we're at the front again, winning races regularly – which is a work-in-progress – it’s about being there in the times when things do take an unexpected turn."