Less than three weeks after the announcement of Alpine's return to motorsport by Renault's Chief Operations Officer Carlos Tavares, the N°36 Alpine made its track debut this week. 

The programme's three drivers - Nelson Panciatici, Pierre Ragues and Tristan Gommendy - took advantage of the official European Le Mans Series pre-season test at Circuit Paul Ricard, France, to get their first taste of the newcomer ahead of the 2013 campaign. 

The main objectives of the session were to test the changes made to the Alpine's chassis and optimise its set up to function with the latest Michelin rubber. Different tyres were evaluated in daylight and after nightfall in order to prepare for the opening rounds of the European Le Mans Series, as well as for the Le Mans 24 Hours. 

In addition, the three drivers used the session to find their marks in the N°36 Alpine and prepare the ground for forthcoming developments.

"I am pleased with the work we were able to get in. We tested the reliability of a high number of parts and also worked on the different new-spec tyres our partner Michelin had brought for us to evaluate. Another important point was that all three riders were able to enjoy track time and Wednesday morning’s encouraging run enabled us to target a quick lap time. It's all looking good for the beginning of the season," observed Signatech-Alpine's Team Principal, Philippe Sinault.

Commenting on the results, Panciatici said, "We made good progress with Michelin. I did a number of runs with different options and I believe we succeeded in collecting some useful information. We are working in the right direction and I hope that will pay off at Silverstone!"