Alpine drivers pin hopes on Suzuka upgrade

Alpine is pinning its hopes on the next race in Japan to trigger a wave of momentum that begins to pull Renault’s once-great team off the back of the 2024 grid.

Actually, following the disastrous pace seen in Bahrain and Jeddah, French duo Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly already looked happier in Melbourne - before niggly problems spoiled the final result.

"It’s frustrating," Ocon told the French broadcaster Canal Plus, "because I was in front of Magnussen, I was fighting with Albon, we were in the fight for the last points.

"But there will be new features on the car in Japan," he revealed, referring to the next grand prix at the fabled Suzuka circuit next weekend.

"We will have to see how much this brings us in performance."

As for Gasly, he said his problems on Sunday were purely "anecdotal" because comfortable points finishes are still some way ahead on the horizon.

"We have to improve," he told the same broadcaster. "We are still far from the performance we need to get points."

Alpine is joined only Williams and Sauber in terms of failing to score a single point at the opening three rounds of the 2024 season.

"I hope the new parts will bring us closer to the cars in front," Gasly added. "We know what to focus on, we try to do the best possible with what we have and that’s what we have done so far.

"What we are missing is very clear," he said. "There is no specific element - we must improve absolutely everything.

"But the whole team is working on it - a plan has been put in place. But we have to be realistic. It takes time. We must not hide that, but I have confidence in the team to make the right choices."