Both Alpine A470s were among the 24 Hours of Le Mans competitors to hit the track during Sunday's Test Day.
In the morning session, André Negrão (no.35) set the fastest time in the LMP2.
In the afternoon, Nelson Panciatici (no.35) confirmed the good form of the French team in setting a new lap record for the category!

Over the course of the day, the Signatech Alpine Matmut team covered an impressive 3,189.186km.

Sunday's 24 Hours of Le Mans Test Day – a mandatory practice session for the sixty cars competing in this year's main event – proved very popular with fans, reflecting the level of enthusiasm for this, the 85th edition of the race.

The schedule featured two four-hour sessions. The Alpine A470s headed straight out onto the track as soon as it was open, with Matt Rao (no.36) and Pierre Ragues (no.35). Very quickly, André Negrão took over in the no.35 car, since the Brazilian rookie was required to complete ten laps in order to obtain final authorisation to take part in the race. Once this formality was out of the way, the team could concentrate fully on its technical programme, centred on assessing the aerodynamic settings and the three types of Dunlop slick tyres.

Towards the end of the morning, all the leading competitors attempted to set a fast time. On soft tyres, Gustavo Menezes (no.36) was held up in traffic and was unable to get a clear run. In contrast, André Negrão demonstrated his ability to adapt quickly to unfamiliar surroundings as he set the fastest time in the LMP2, with a 3:29.809.

After an hour-long break, the cars returned to the track for the second session. Records continued to fall as the track became increasingly quick and once again, it was the Alpine A470 no.35 that stole the show. Midway through the session, Nelson Panciatici moved top of the category standings. With a lap of 3:28.146 – at an average speed of 235.72kph – the Frenchman bettered the 2016 pole position time by more eight seconds. He therefore set a new lap record for an LMP2 in the Alpine A470, with a time would have secured outright pole position at the 2006 24 Hours of Le Mans!

For the Signatech Alpine Matmut no.36 crew, the afternoon was devoted to working on the car's race set-up. Romain Dumas, Matt Rao and Gustavo Menezes took turns to complete long runs, preferring to focus on consistency and driving comfort.

Following the Test Day, the teams will stay at the 24 Hour track to prepare for race week. The next on-track action will be on Wednesday, 14 June with free practice, followed by the first qualifying session…

Bernard Ollivier, Alpine Deputy Managing Director
"It has been a very positive day, with a lot of work done by the team and some superb performances too. They say that it's only testing and it's true that we don't necessarily know the strategy adopted by our rivals, but I think we can safely say that we have the potential to successfully defend the victories secured last year. Congratulations to Nelson for the lap record, which demonstrates in itself the level of our cars and drivers. We come away from today's test with our motivation unchanged, but also with a lot of confidence in the team and our two crews. We hope that there'll be a lot of Alpine fans alongside the track to support us. We'll certainly be a force to be reckoned with in two weeks' time!"

Philippe Sinault, Signatech Alpine Matmut Team Principal
"We're obviously very pleased to have set the fastest time in each session, even if this wasn't our goal as such. With his lap record, Nelson Panciatici confirmed that he is still one of the very best drivers in the category and that we are going to have two genuinely competitive crews. It's also a richly-deserved result for the newly-formed no.35 technical team. Today was especially productive, since both our Alpine A470s and our six drivers managed to complete a lot of laps with no reliability issues whatsoever. For our engineers, the race starts properly tomorrow, with a mountain of data to analyse ahead of the week of the 24 Hours of Le Mans."

Signatech Alpine Matmut no.35​
Nelson Panciatici
"Over the last few years, the performances of the cars have been relatively stable. This year, with laps of under 3:30, we've moved into something of a new dimension, with straights that seem shorter and braking points that need to be adapted. You also have to adopt a different approach to managing the traffic: although it's easier to overtake the GTs, you have to bear in mind that we come across them more often… Finding a clear lap is therefore not easy. I'm pleased to set the best time of the day. It wasn't the goal and it's only testing, but it's always nice to be first!"

André Negrão
"Although today was my first outing on this track, I wasn't destabilised because I had prepared well on the simulator. I grew in confidence as I completed more runs but I was really surprised to set the fastest time of the morning! The team did a great job, the feeling in the car is excellent and I can't wait until we get back in the car at the next practice session. I know that this is just the beginning for us."

Pierre Ragues
"Within a few laps, I felt comfortable in the car. I think it's always exhilarating to get close to 330kph on the long Mulsanne straight! We worked hard today and stuck to the schedule we had set for ourselves. The no.1 goal was to try the various types of tyres and gather as much data as possible so that the engineers can prepare for the race. The team has a lot of experience with this and I'm confident."

Signatech Alpine Matmut​ no. 36
Gustavo Menezes
"The new car is incredible to drive on this track. With the downforce and the power, it's more and more like a single-seater, and I'd say that's a pretty good thing… Throughout the day, we tried to find the right balance and the times show that we did a good job! I was able to try several types of compound, especially the soft tyres at the end of the morning. I struggled to get a completely clear run, but the speed was undoubtedly there."

Romain Dumas
"It was a good day, we managed to maintain good pace on worn tyres. The car was also comfortable and reliable, which is always nice at Le Mans! Both Alpine A470s were quick despite having different set-ups. We are sure have some very useful data. The day's lap times confirm just how close it's going to be. I think we're well prepared."

Matt Rao
"We're pleased with the work done today, especially on the race set-up, which was our main priority. The goal is always the same: achieve gradual and even degradation of the tyres, whilst managing fuel consumption. Although the LMP2s are a lot quicker than last year, I feel totally confident in the Alpine A470."

TEST DAY STANDINGS - LMP2

1. Signatech Alpine Matmut no.35 – 3:28.146
2. CEFC Manor TRS Racing no.24 – 3:28.844
3. Jackie Chan DC Racing no.37 – 3:29.104
4. G-Drive Racing no.26 – 3:29.113
5. Jackie Chan DC Racing no.38 – 3:29.924
6. Vaillante Rebellion no.13 – 3:30.150
7. TDS Racing no.28 – 3:30.375
8. Signatech Alpine Matmut no.36 – 3:30.501