How no DRS and heavy fuel load disguised Alpine’s F1 test progress

Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon had a low-key week at the first Barcelona pre-season test, before running was cut short by an hydraulics problem on the final day.

But even though the team never featured near the top of the timesheets, Alpine thinks a combination of factors meant its true potential was never going to be on display.

One of the key contributors was a decision not to run DRS in the test – which was worth around seven tenths of a second per lap – but the…