Alpine boss Philipp Sinault on Hypercar exit and what it means for WEC

The shockwaves are still being felt after the announcement that Alpine will end its factory programme in the World Endurance Championship’s Hypercar class after 2026. The decision, while anticipated given the signals coming from the manufacturer and from Viry-Chtiallon, is nevertheless significant – both for the championship and for a French team carrying a rich endurance racing heritage.

Philippe Sinault is one of the team’s figureheads, one of the key architects of the project and a long-standing figure in endurance racing at a time when the discipline is being reshaped by the Hypercar era. Behind the Alpine team lie the solid foundations of Signatech, which has supported the ambitions of a programme designed to aim high. Yet after just three seasons, it is set to come to an end.

However, Alpine still has to complete one more season in the top class of endurance racing before it bows out of the championship. At the presentation of the A424 in Paris a few days ago, the emphasis quickly turned to the team’s determination to win, with smiles attempting to mask the collective disappointment.

A few days later, Motorsport.com sat down with its team principal to reflect on the news – both from a personal and collective perspective – and, above all, to understand how the team intends to respond on track. Thoughts about 2027 can wait. For Sinault, the focus today is on moving forward with a united team determined to prove that what it has built still has more to show.

Motorsport: How did you react to the news of Renault ending the Hypercar programme, and how did you handle it internally with your team?

Philippe Sinault: It’s obviously difficult and complicated news. But very quickly – because when you’re involved in high-level sport you are somewhat conditioned for this – we focused 100% on the upcoming season, and we already were even before the announcement.

So,  everything we have said about our determination to perform this year, to continue the performance and improvements momentum we showed at the end of 2025, all of that now makes even more sense and becomes an absolute priority.

So, what did we do? We all gathered in the workshop around the coffee machine and shared [the moment]. I announced this difficult news, but the team’s reaction was fantastic. Without revealing too much, the team applauded – simply to show their determination and their will to perform together. We write our future together, even more than before, whether individually, personally or collectively.

So there is one basic premise: the programme ends at the end of 2026. There’s no point trying to understand the reasons, because that would just waste time and energy. We need to focus on our objective, which was already clear but now even more so, and which we must write together.

MS: From a human perspective, does it bring people closer together?

PS: Humanly speaking, I think it will bring us even closer together and create momentum. I’m not saying that in the end it’s good news – obviously it isn’t – but it generates an incredible desire within us, even stronger than before.

MS: Beyond this year, could the car continue under a private banner or with a customer team?

PS: The answer doesn’t belong to me, honestly. The car is eligible and homologated at least until 2029. So yes, physically the car could run and could potentially continue competing in the World Endurance Championship and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. But I’m not the only one who makes that decision, and there are many parameters and people who would need to come together to imagine what comes next.

Today, even though as a company director and team leader I have to think about the future, the near future for me is really the next races and Le Mans. In three months we will be at Le Mans, and it’s essential that we are ready and fully mobilised.

MS: In that context, how is the team approaching the start of the season? Do you feel they are motivated and focused despite everything? Have you managed to instil that?

PS: Yes, and it’s not necessarily me who has instilled it in them – they also instil it in me. Personally, my relationship [with the team members] is extremely important because they challenge me as well. The news is gone. I wouldn’t say it’s been digested, but it is gone. So we are really focused on what we have to do.

The mistake we must avoid is overplaying things and overreacting. If I have one message for everyone, it’s that I’m certain of their qualities and of each individual’s talent. So I tell them: ‘Don’t overreact, don’t overplay it.’

Let’s stay on the same trajectory we set at the start of the season, before the announcement. We have everything we need to do well. Let’s make the best use of the ingredients we have and of the work we have done to perform this year and at Le Mans.

MS: At the launch, though, it felt as though between the lines there was a desire to prove that despite everything you are here to win – almost a sense of ‘we’ll show them what we’re capable of’.

PS: Yes, you’re right – you felt it because we probably did let it show. Deep down, it’s human to want to demonstrate even more [what we’re capable of]. But we must not go to extremes or excess, because that could be counterproductive. So, I try to temper these heightened emotions by saying: ‘Let’s stay on the trend we set earlier, at the start of the season.’

MS: What is your view of the championship today? With Alpine’s programme ending, after Porsche’s departure, is this a warning sign for the future of the Hypercar category?

PS: Those are certainly significant signals, that’s obvious. Porsche leaving and the announcement that Alpine will stop at the end of the year are strong signals. However, the championship is well structured and the rules are very well written.

It’s well managed – otherwise there wouldn’t be so many manufacturers and candidates looking to join the championship. Rather, it’s the economic context and the world we live in today that sometimes lead to rather surprising and sudden decisions.

The championship itself should certainly take these signals into account, but I don’t believe they are the result of poor management by the regulator or the promoter. Honestly, I think it’s due to a broader context, but as it stands today – the way it is organised, managed and regulated – it is a very, very strong platform for sporting, human and technical expression for manufacturers.

So I don’t think the fundamentals of the championship should be questioned because of Porsche’s departure and Alpine’s announcement. No, I think improvements can be made, but it remains a wonderful arena in which to compete.

MS: May I ask how you personally see your future after 2026? I understand you’re focused on the coming season, but what will happen in a few months is still significant in your life…

PS: Yes, it is significant, you’re right, and I thank you for taking an interest both in the collective future and in mine personally. I don’t like fishing! So I don’t plan to go fishing – that’s my answer. I have a great team, a really great team. We have talents in it, and all of us still want to go racing and to win races. As long as that desire is there, we will make sure to write our future together once again and see what it holds.

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– The Motorsport.com Team

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