The Alpine Academy[1] – formerly known as the RF1 Driver Programme, Renault Driver Development and Renault Sport Academy – is a program to support young racing drivers through their careers. The programme was created by Renault F1 in 2002.

France Alpine Academy
FoundedRF1 Driver Programme (2002 (2002))
Renault Sport Academy (2016 (2016))
Alpine Academy (2021 (2021))
BaseEnstone, Oxfordshire, England, UK
Team principal(s)Julian Rouse (Director)
Current driversFIA Formula 2
Australia Jack Doohan
France Victor Martins
India Kush Maini
FIA Formula 3

Bulgaria Nikola Tsolov
Italy Gabriele Minì
Germany Sophia Flörsch
FR Oceania Championship
Italy Nicola Lacorte
Italian F4
Singapore Kabir Anurag
Brazil Matheus Ferreira
F4 UAE
Japan Kean Nakamura-Berta
F1 Academy
United Kingdom Abbi Pulling
Karting
Australia Aiva Anagnostiadis
France Angélina Proenca
Switzerland Chiara Battig
France Lisa Billard
Italy Maria Chiara Nardelli
United Kingdom Sukhmani Kaur Khera
Websitehttps://www.alpinecars.com/en/formula-1/academy/

In 2011, the programme was renamed LRGP Academy, following the rebranding of the team to "Lotus Renault GP".[2] In 2012, the programme was renamed Lotus F1 Team iRace Professional Programme and 2013–2015, the programme was renamed Lotus F1 Junior Team. In 2021, the programme was renamed Alpine Academy after the rebranding of the Renault F1 team into Alpine F1 Team. In March 2022, the Alpine Affiliates programme was launched as a support to drivers starting their motorsport careers, and is intended to be a feeder for the Alpine Academy.[3]

Current drivers edit

Driver Years Current Series Titles as Alpine junior
  Victor Martins[4] 2018–2019
2021–
FIA Formula 2 Championship FIA Formula 3 Championship
  Jack Doohan[5] 2022– TBA none as Alpine Academy member
  Matheus Ferreira[6] 2022– Formula Winter Series
Italian F4 Championship
Euro 4 Championship
none as Alpine Academy member
  Kean Nakamura-Berta[6] 2022– Formula 4 UAE Championship
Italian F4 Championship
Euro 4 Championship
CIK-FIA Karting European Championship OK
  Abbi Pulling[6] 2022– F1 Academy
F4 British Championship
none as Alpine Academy member
  Nikola Tsolov[7] 2022– FIA Formula 3 Championship F4 Spanish Championship
  Sophia Flörsch[8] 2023– FIA Formula 3 Championship none as Alpine Academy member
  Gabriele Minì[9] 2023– FIA Formula 3 Championship none as Alpine Academy member
  Kush Maini[10] 2023– FIA Formula 2 Championship none as Alpine Academy member
  Nicola Lacorte[11] 2023– Formula Regional Oceania Championship
Formula Regional European Championship
none as Alpine Academy member
  Kabir Anurag[12] 2024– Formula Winter Series
Italian F4 Championship
Euro 4 Championship
none as Alpine Academy member

Rac(H)er Karting Programme edit

Driver Years Current Series Titles as Rac(H)er member
  Aiva Anagnostiadis[13] 2023– Australia Kart Championship none as Rac(H)er Programme member
  Angélina Proenca[13] 2023– IAME Euro Series none as Rac(H)er Programme member
  Chiara Battig[13] 2023– Italian ACI Karting Championship none as Rac(H)er Programme member
  Lisa Billard[13] 2023– Championnat de France Junior Championship none as Rac(H)er Programme member
  Maria Chiara Nardelli[13] 2023– Italian ACI Karting Championship none as Rac(H)er Programme member
  Sukhmani Kaur Khera[13] 2023– British Karting Championship none as Rac(H)er Programme member

Former drivers edit

Renault / Lotus Renault GP (2002–2011, 2016–2020) edit

Driver Years Series competed F1 Team(s)
  Fabio Carbone 2002 British Formula 3 Championship (2002) None
  Robert Kubica 2002 Italian Formula Renault Championship (2002) BMW Sauber (2006–2009)
Renault (2010)
Williams (2019)
Alfa Romeo (2021)
  Tiago Monteiro 2002 French Formula Three Championship (2002)
International Formula 3000 (2002)
Jordan (2005)
Midland F1 (2006)
  Carlo van Dam 2002 Karting (2002) None
  Eric Salignon 2002–2003 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2002)
Championnat de France Formula Renault 2.0 (2002)
British Formula 3 Championship (2003)
None
  Heikki Kovalainen 2002–2005 British Formula 3 Championship (2002)
World Series by Nissan (20032004)
GP2 Series (2005)
Renault (2007)
McLaren (2008–2009)
Team Lotus (2010–2011)
Caterham (2012)
Lotus F1 (2013)
  Danny Watts 2003 British Formula 3 Championship (2003) None
  José María López 2003–2006 Formula Renault V6 Eurocup (2003)
International Formula 3000 (2004)
GP2 Series (20052006)
None
  Giedo van der Garde 2004 Formula 3 Euro Series (2004) Caterham (2013)
  Loïc Duval 2004–2005 Formula 3 Euro Series (20042005) None
  Pastor Maldonado 2004–2005 Italian Formula Renault Championship (2004)
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2004)
Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2005)
Williams (2011–2013)
Lotus F1 (2014–2015)
  Jérôme d'Ambrosio 2004, 2010 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2004)
Championnat de France Formula Renault 2.0 (2004)
GP2 Series (2010)
Formula E
Virgin Racing (2011)
Lotus F1 (2012)
  Lucas di Grassi[14] 2005–2007 Formula 3 Euro Series (2005)
GP2 Series (20062007)
Virgin Racing (2010)
  Ben Hanley[14] 2006–2008 Formula Renault 3.5 Series (20062007)
GP2 Series (2008)
None
  Romain Grosjean[14] 2006–2009 Formula 3 Euro Series (20062007)
GP2 Asia Series (2008)
GP2 Series (20082009)
Renault (2009)
Lotus F1 (2012–2015)
Haas (2016–2020)
  Dani Clos[14] 2007 Formula 3 Euro Series (2007) None
  Nelson Panciatici[14] 2007 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2007)
Championnat de France Formula Renault 2.0 (2007)
None
  Charles Pic[15] 2009 Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2009) Marussia (2012)
Caterham (2013)
  Davide Valsecchi[15] 2009 GP2 Series (2009) None
  Jan Charouz 2010–2011 Formula Renault 3.5 Series (201011)
Auto GP (2011)
None
  Ho-Pin Tung 2010–2011 GP2 Series (2010)
Superleague Formula (2011)
None
  Fairuz Fauzy 2011 GP2 Series (2011) None
  Louis Delétraz[16] 2016 GP2 Series (2016)
Formula V8 3.5 Series (2016)
None
  Kevin Jörg[16] 2016 GP3 Series (2016) None
  Oliver Rowland[16] 2016 GP2 Series (2016) None
  Sun Yueyang[17] 2016–2018 Karting (2016)
Formula Renault Eurocup (2017)
Formula Renault NEC (2017)
BRDC British Formula 3 Championship (2018)
None
  Jack Aitken[16] 2016–2018 GP3 Series (201617)
FIA Formula 2 Championship (2018)
Williams (2020)
  Marta García 2017 Spanish F4 Championship (2017)
SMP F4 Championship (2017)
None
  Jarno Opmeer[18] 2017 Formula Renault Eurocup (2017) None
  Sacha Fenestraz[19] 2017–2018 Formula Renault Eurocup (2017)
FIA Formula 3 European Championship (2018)
GP3 Series (2018)
None
  Max Fewtrell[18] 2017–2020 Formula Renault Eurocup (20172018)
Formula Renault NEC (201718)
FIA Formula 3 Championship (201920)
None
  Christian Lundgaard[20] 2017–2021 SMP F4 Championship (2017)
F4 Spanish Championship (2017)
Formula Renault Eurocup (2018)
FIA Formula 3 Championship (2019)
FIA Formula 2 Championship (20202021)
IndyCar Series (2021)
None
  Arthur Rougier[21] 2018 Formula Renault Eurocup (2018) None
  Anthoine Hubert[22] 2018–2019 FIA Formula 2 Championship (2019)[note 1] None
  Leonardo Lorandi[24] 2019 Formula Renault Eurocup (2019) None
  Yifei Ye[25] 2019 FIA Formula 3 Championship (2019) None
  Guanyu Zhou[26] 2019–2021 FIA Formula 2 Championship (20192021)
F3 Asian Championship (2021)
Alfa Romeo (2022–2023)
Kick Sauber (2024)
  Caio Collet[27] 2019–2022 Formula Renault Eurocup (20192020)
FIA Formula 3 Championship (20212022)
None
  Oscar Piastri[28] 2020–2021 FIA Formula 3 Championship (2020)
FIA Formula 2 Championship (2021)
McLaren (2023–)[29]
  Hadrien David[30] 2020, 2022 Formula Renault Eurocup (2020)
Formula Regional European Championship (2022)
None
  Olli Caldwell[5] 2022 FIA Formula 2 Championship (2022) None
  Aiden Neate[6] 2023 Formula Regional Middle East Championship (2023)
F4 British Championship (2023)
None
  • Championship titles highlighted in bold.

Lotus F1 (2012–2015) edit

Driver Years Series competed F1 Team(s)
  Marco Sørensen[31] 2009,
2013–2015
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2009)
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC (2009)
Formula Renault 3.5 Series (20132014)
GP2 Series (20142015)
FIA World Endurance Championship (2015)
None
  Kevin Korjus[32] 2012 Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2012) None
  Richie Stanaway[32] 2012 Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2012) None
  Óscar Tunjo[31] 2012–2014 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (20122013)
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps (2012)
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC (2013)
Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2014)
GP3 Series (2015)
None
  Esteban Ocon[31] 2012–2014 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (20122013)
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps (2012)
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC (2013)
FIA Formula 3 European Championship (2014)
Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2014)
Manor (2016)
Force India (2017–2018)
Racing Point Force India (2018)
Renault (2020)
Alpine (2021–)
  Dorian Boccolacci[31] 2012–2015 Karting (2012–13)
French F4 Championship (2014)
FIA Formula 3 European Championship (2015)
None
  Alex Fontana[31] 2013–2014 GP3 Series (20132014) None
  Alexander Albon[31] 2013–2015 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (20132014)
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC (20132014)
FIA Formula 3 European Championship (2015)
Toro Rosso (2019)
Red Bull (2019–2020)
Williams (2022–)
  Marlon Stöckinger[31] 2013–2015 Formula Renault 3.5 Series (20132015)
GP2 Series (2015)
None
  Callan O'Keeffe[33] 2014 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2014)
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC (2014)
None
  Gregor Ramsay[33] 2014 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2014)
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC (2014)
None
  Juan Manuel Correa[33] 2014–2015 Karting (2014–2015) None
  Matthieu Vaxivière[31] 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2015)
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps (2015)
None
  Petr Ptáček[34] 2015 Karting (2015) None

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ Hubert was a member of the Renault Sport Academy when he suffered a fatal crash in the 2019 Belgian F2 Feature Race.[23]

References edit

  1. ^ Howard, Tom (10 February 2021). "Alpine F1 team launches rebranded junior academy". Motorsport.com Australia. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 14 February 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Fairuz Fauzy to become Renault reserve". formula1.com. Formula One Administration. 19 January 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2011.
  3. ^ "Alpine launches new 'Affiliate' driver programme". Motorsport Week. 9 March 2022. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  4. ^ Larkam, Lewis (10 February 2021). "Alpine F1 team reveals Academy line-up for 2021 season". Crash. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Alpine adds Doohan and Caldwell to F1 driver academy". Motorsport Week. 14 February 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d "Alpine présente le cru 2023 de son Academy". Autohebdo (in French). 14 February 2023. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  7. ^ Mini and Tsolov join Alpine Academy for 2023 season
  8. ^ "Alpine's RAC(H)ER programme for equal opportunity announces new talents and the creation of its human high-performance centre". Alpine. 16 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  9. ^ Mini and Tsolov join Alpine Academy for 2023 season
  10. ^ Wood, Ida (24 October 2023). "Mika Hakkinen's protege Kush Maini becomes Alpine F1 junior". Formula Scout. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  11. ^ "Alpine adds Nicola Lacorte in its F1 academy". FormulaRapida.net. 4 December 2023. Archived from the original on 5 December 2023. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  12. ^ Almeida, Mario (15 April 2024). "Kabir Anurag joins the Alpine Academy programme". Alpine. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  13. ^ a b c d e f "Alpine launches all-female karting programme". Racers. 17 February 2023. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  14. ^ a b c d e "The Renault Driver development Programme announces its 2007 class" (PDF). Renault Sport. 14 February 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 February 2007. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  15. ^ a b "The Renault Driver development Programme announces its 2009 class". f1technical.net. 19 January 2009. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  16. ^ a b c d Allen, Peter (3 February 2016). "Renault names Ocon as F1 reserve, plus four-man academy". Paddock Scout. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  17. ^ Khorounzhiy, Valentin (13 April 2016). "Renault signs Chinese karting driver Sun Yue Yang". Motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  18. ^ a b "Aitken leads 2017 Renault Sport Academy line-up". 21 February 2017. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
  19. ^ Allen, Peter (18 December 2018). "Sacha Fenestraz loses Renault academy status and looks to Japan for 2019". FormulaScout. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  20. ^ "Garcia and Lundgaard announced to Renault Sport Academy". 31 March 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  21. ^ "French F4 rivals Rougier and Martins become Renault juniors ahead of Eurocup moves". 15 January 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  22. ^ Horton, Phillip (23 January 2019). "GP3 champion Anthoine Hubert joins Renault F1 scheme, makes F2 move". Motorsport Week. Archived from the original on 23 January 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  23. ^ "F2 driver Hubert killed in Spa-Francorchamps crash". motorsport.com. Motorsport.com. 31 August 2019. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  24. ^ Suttill, Josh (23 May 2019). "Leonardo Lorandi earns Renault F1 affiliate driver status". formulascout.com. Formula Scout. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
  25. ^ Allen, Peter (11 April 2019). "Yifei Ye joins Renault Sport Academy ahead of FIA F3". FormulaScout. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  26. ^ "GUANYU ZHOU JOINS THE RENAULT SPORT ACADEMY FOR 2019". 22 January 2019. Archived from the original on 16 March 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  27. ^ "Renault Sport Academy signs Caio Collet". 22 January 2019. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  28. ^ "Piastri combines with Prema for FIA Formula 3 Championship and joins Renault Sport Academy". 26 January 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  29. ^ "Piastri to drive for McLaren as Alpine lose appeal". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
  30. ^ "Alpine Academy introduces Affiliate programme and Abbi Pulling as the academy's first ever female driver". The Checkered Flag. 9 March 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  31. ^ a b c d e f g h "Lotus F1 Junior Team drivers announced". GPUpdate.net. JHED Media BV. 15 February 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  32. ^ a b Allen, Peter (5 February 2012). "Lotus and Gravity launch iRace Professional Programme". Paddock Scout. Peter Allen. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  33. ^ a b c Allen, Peter (2 April 2014). "O'Keeffe and Ramsay join Lotus F1 Junior Team". Paddock Scout. PaddockScout.com. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  34. ^ "Petr Ptacek Jr avec Lotus F1 Junior Team et Energy en 2015". Kartcom. 4 November 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2023.

External links edit