Alpine Academy announces biggest ever line-up of junior drivers for 2023

Alpine will become the last Formula 1 team to present their new car on Thursday. Ahead of the unveiling, the Alpine Academy have announced their biggest ever line-up of junior drivers: eight drivers will be part of the training programme in 2023.

Alpine announces eight juniors

For Formula 2 driver Jack Doohan, son of motorsport legend Mick Doohan, it will be his second year with Alpine's training programme. At the end of 2021, he swapped the Red Bull Junior Team for a spot at the Alpine Academy, something the Virtuosi driver refers to as the "best move of his career" given the opportunities he has been offered since then.

Victor Martins also remains with the training programme, who has been a part of for several years. The 2022 Formula 3 champion will make the switch to F2 this year, where he will once again race for ART Grand Prix.

New names to become full-fledged Alpine juniors from this point onwards are Formula 3 debutants Nikola Tsolov and Gabriele Mini. The same goes for Matheus Ferreira, who will make his debut in Italian Formula 4 with Van Amersfoort Racing. In addition, karting talent Kean Nakamura joins the academy, as does UAE F4 driver Aiden Neate. With Abbi Pulling, the Alpine Academy also has a female junior driver: she will compete in the new F1 Academy in 2023.

Pressure is immediately full on

"The 2023 Alpine Academy line-up is arguably the most competitive it’s ever been," says director Julian Rouse. "It’s been great to expand our roster to eight drivers and be able to represent Alpine across many disciplines. In Formula 2, we have two drivers in Jack and Victor who both have the potential to be fighting near the front."

He continued: "It’s the same in Formula 3 with Nikola and Gabriele who I expect will be competitive from the get-go. Away from the Formula 1 support categories, we’re looking forward to seeing what Abbi, Matheus, Aiden and Kean can achieve across their respective series." So the pressure is on the young talents right away.