Alpine says it will be “logical” to compete within the IMSA SportsCar Championship as soon as the model inches nearer to getting into the North American automotive market.
The French producer has revealed it’s open to the concept of increasing its manufacturing facility LMDh programme with the A424 past the World Endurance Championship sooner or later, having simply clinched its first podium at Fuji final month.
The WEC and IMSA have agreed a technical convergence that permits producers to compete in each championships with the identical automotive, which means the A424 that debuted in March this yr is eligible to compete within the latter’s GTP class.
IMSA is based in the USA, the place Alpine presently has no direct presence, however dad or mum firm Renault has laid out plans for Alpine to promote automobiles on the earth’s second-biggest four-wheel market from 2027.
Bruno Famin, VP of motorsport at Alpine, thinks becoming a member of IMSA will present the French producer with a significant advertising and marketing enhance for its potential launch in North America.
“We might be completely happy [to race in IMSA],” Famin advised Motorsport.com.
“There is no such thing as a actual plan, there’s an concept in the interim to race in IMSA, as a result of it isn’t a secret that Alpine the model want to be on the American market certainly one of these coming years and, after all, motorsport is the way in which to develop the model consciousness.
Bruno Famin, Crew Principal, Alpine F1 Crew on the Press Convention
Picture by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Photographs
“In fact, as soon as the model will resolve to go to the US, it will likely be very logical to have an IMSA programme.
“However for the second, it is simply on the stage of the concept. We’ve [it] in thoughts, we’re it. There is no such thing as a concrete challenge but.”
Alpine’s WEC programme is a full-fledged manufacturing facility effort run in collaboration with its long-standing companion Signatech.
Nevertheless, a standard IMSA effort usually entails a workforce taking over a extra hands-on function with the working of the automotive, as seen with Chip Ganassi/Cadillac and Wayne Taylor Racing/Acura.
Requested if he had spoken with any groups in North America about fielding the Alpine A424 in IMSA, he mentioned: “Not but, not really but. We’ve some contact as a result of I do know some guys there. However nothing but.
“Once more, it isn’t a challenge in the interim. It is simply an concept.”
