Remove ads
The Alpine Academy,[1] formerly known as the RF1 Driver Programme, Renault Driver Development and Renault Sport Academy, is a driver development programme to support young racing drivers through their careers. The programme was created by Renault F1 in 2002.
 | |
| Founded | 2002 (as RF1 Driver Programme) |
|---|---|
| Base | Enstone, Oxfordshire, England |
| Team principal(s) | Julian Rouse (Director) |
| Current drivers | FIA Formula 2  Victor Martins Kush MainiFIA Formula 3  Gabriele Minì Sophia FlörschFR European Championship Nicola Lacorte Italian F4  Kabir Anurag  Kean Nakamura-Berta F1 Academy & British F4  Abbi PullingKarting  Aiva Anagnostiadis Angélina Proenca Lisa Billard Maria Chiara Nardelli Sukhmani Kaur Khera |
| Website | https://www.alpine-cars.co.uk/formula-1/alpine-academy.html |
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] However, it was merged into Alpine Academy at the start of 2023.
Remove ads
| Driver | Years | Current Series | Titles as Alpine junior |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victor Martins[4] |
2018–2019 2021– |
FIA Formula 2 Championship | FIA Formula 3 Championship |
| Kean Nakamura-Berta[5] |
2022– | Formula 4 UAE Championship Italian F4 Championship Euro 4 Championship |
CIK-FIA Karting European Championship OK |
| Abbi Pulling[5] |
2022– | F1 Academy F4 British Championship |
F1 Academy |
| Sophia Flörsch[6] |
2023– | FIA Formula 3 Championship | none as Alpine Academy member |
| Gabriele Minì[7] |
2023– | FIA Formula 3 Championship FIA Formula 2 Championship |
none as Alpine Academy member |
| Kush Maini[8] |
2023– | FIA Formula 2 Championship | none as Alpine Academy member |
| Nicola Lacorte[9] |
2023– | Formula Regional Oceania Championship Formula Regional European Championship |
none as Alpine Academy member |
| Kabir Anurag[10] |
2024– | Formula Winter Series Italian F4 Championship Euro 4 Championship |
none as Alpine Academy member |
Remove ads
| Driver | Years | Current Series | Titles as Rac(H)er member |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aiva Anagnostiadis[11] |
2023– | Australia Kart Championship | none as Rac(H)er Programme member |
| Angélina Proenca[11] |
2023– | IAME Euro Series | none as Rac(H)er Programme member |
| Lisa Billard[11] |
2023– | Championnat de France Junior Championship | none as Rac(H)er Programme member |
| Maria Chiara Nardelli[11] |
2023– | Italian ACI Karting Championship | none as Rac(H)er Programme member |
| Sukhmani Kaur Khera[11] |
2023– | British Karting Championship | none as Rac(H)er Programme member |
Remove ads
This list contains the drivers that have graduated to Formula 1 while being supported by Renault, Lotus Renault, or Alpine. Therefore, drivers who have had support in the past and entered Formula 1 through other means are not included. For example, both Zhou Guanyu and Oscar Piastri were members of the Alpine Academy, however, they broke their ties with the academy to pursue a graduation to Formula 1 with another team.[12][13]
| Driver | Academy experience | F1 experience with Renault/Lotus/Alpine | F1 experience with other teams | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Years | Former series | |||
 Heikki Kovalainen |
2002–2005 | British Formula 3 Championship (2002) World Series by Nissan (2003–2004) GP2 Series (2005) |
2007 | McLaren (2008–2009) Team Lotus (2010–2011) Caterham (2012) Lotus F1 (2013) |
| Romain Grosjean |
2006–2009 | Formula 3 Euro Series (2006–2007) GP2 Asia Series (2008) GP2 Series (2008–2009) |
2009 2012–2015 |
Haas (2016–2020) |
| Jack Doohan |
2022–2024 | FIA Formula 2 Championship (2022–2023) | 2024– | — |
Renault / Lotus Renault GP (2002–2011, 2016–2020)
- Championship titles highlighted in bold.
Lotus F1 (2012–2015)
Alpine F1 (2021–)
| Driver | Years | Series competed | F1 Team(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
 Guanyu Zhou |
2021 | FIA Formula 2 Championship (2021) F3 Asian Championship (2021) |
Alfa Romeo (2022–2023) Kick Sauber (2024) |
 Caio Collet |
2021–2022 | FIA Formula 3 Championship (2021–2022) | None |
| Oscar Piastri[28] |
2021–2022 | FIA Formula 2 Championship (2021) | McLaren (2023–) |
| Olli Caldwell[35] |
2022 | FIA Formula 2 Championship (2022) | None |
| Hadrien David[30] |
2022 | Formula Regional European Championship (2022) | None |
| Matheus Ferreira[5] |
2022–2023 | Italian F4 Championship (2023) F4 Brazilian Championship (2023) |
None |
| Jack Doohan[35] |
2022–2024 | FIA Formula 2 Championship (2022–2023) | Alpine (2024) |
 Nikola Tsolov[36][37] |
2022–2024 | F4 Spanish Championship (2022) FIA Formula 3 Championship (2023–2024) |
None |
| Aiden Neate[5] |
2023 | Formula Regional Middle East Championship (2023) F4 British Championship (2023) |
None |
- Championship titles highlighted in bold.
Rac(H)er Karting Programme
Remove ads
Wikiwand in your browser!
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
Remove ads