Paul Alberto (Chazel Technologie Course #03) dominated both free practice sessions before building on his momentum to become the first driver this season to secure two pole positions. Alpine Elf Cup Series newcomer Jonathan Devaux (Race Cars Consulting #33) set the fastest time in Q2, but his guest status and Silver classification saw Julien Neveu (Schumacher GP #31) take the bonus point instead.

Race 1: Alberto and Rdest control the action

Starting from pole on Saturday, Paul Alberto briefly lost the lead to Lenny Kieffer (Schumacher GP #31), but regained it before the end of the opening lap. Behind them, Jonathan Devaux overtook Romain Monti (Chazel Technologie Course #111) before the latter reclaimed his position on lap six. Axel Constantin (Chazel Technologie Course #123) and Anthony Pisano (Chazel Technologie Course #09) followed suit, watched on by Alexandre Lopez (Chazel Technologie Course #93).

After Romain Monti overtook Lenny Kieffer as the driver change window opened, Paul Alberto maintained a four-second lead. The race leader and the Luxembourg native handed over to their respective teammates, Gosia Rdest and Julien Neveu. Having stayed on track for one lap longer than his rivals, Romain Monti entered the pit lane a few seconds too late, which cost his crew a five-second stop-and-go penalty.

Gosia Rdest managed the lead perfectly in her stint to secure her second win of the season with Paul Alberto. Julien Neveu and Lenny Kieffer finished second, whilst Julien Paget and Anthony Pisano claimed their first podium finish. Despite the penalty, Romain Monti and Rodolphe Wallgren climbed back up to fourth place by overtaking their team-mates Axel Constantin and Frédéric de Brabant in the final lap. Alexandre Lopez and Pierre-Laurent Figuiere finished sixth, whilst Jonathan Devaux completed the classification.

Race 2: Monti and Wallgren bounce back

On Sunday, the second race got underway under unusual circumstances. A technical fault prevented the lights from turning green, forcing the race organisers to wave the red flag. The field was released after a restart behind the safety car, and Jonathan Devaux stayed in the lead ahead of Julien Neveu, whose race was cut short by a gearbox issue on lap eight.

Still in the lead at the opening of the driver-change window despite pressure from Rodolphe Wallgren, Jonathan Devaux was forced to make an extended five-second pit stop due to his status as a solo Silver driver. The last to pit, he rejoined the action behind the team-mates of his pursuers, Romain Monti and Anthony Pisano. Soon after, Paul Alberto and Axel Constantin also overtook him before the race entered the final minutes.

Romain Monti controlled his pace before fending off Paul Alberto, who set several fastest race laps after taking the lead of the chase group from Anthony Pisano on lap 20. The leader, however, kept his cool to seal his fourth victory of the season alongside Rodolphe Wallgren. Paul Alberto and Gosia Rdest came second, followed by Anthony Pisano and Julien Paget, once again on the podium. Axel Constantin - Frédéric de Brabant and Alexandre Lopez - Pierre-Laurent Figuiere rounded off the top five ahead of Jonathan Devaux.

By sweeping the top five places, Chazel Technologie Course mathematically secured the team title ahead of the final round at Circuit Paul Ricard (9–11 October). The crews of Romain Monti and Rodolphe Wallgren, and Paul Alberto and Gosia Rdest, will battle for the title at Le Castellet. Paul Alberto heads into the final round well-placed to take the Juniors title, as does Rodolphe Wallgren in the AM category.

Alpine takes centre stage in the FFSA GT

In the FFSA GT French Championship, Léo Jousset and Rudy Servol (Race Cars Consulting) dominated qualifying and the first race in their Alpine A110 GT4+. Having ultimately started from the pit lane on Sunday, the pair staged an impressive comeback to third place but were then demoted one place due to a penalty. Alpine was nevertheless represented on the podium thanks to Viny Beltramelli and Frédéric Morel (Code Racing Development).

Rudy Servol and Léo Jousset regained the lead in the general classification, with a 29-point advantage over the Alpine A110 GT4+ driven by their closest rivals, Jérémy Corsin and Lukas Papin (Schumacher GP), unlucky this weekend. In fourth place, Laurent Hurgon and Lazare Lartigau (Chazel Technologie Course) are also still in with a chance of the title. Léo Jousset also extended his lead in the SRO GT Academy by scoring maximum points and is now the favourite to succeed Gaspard Simon. Third and first in the AM Cup this weekend, Stéphane Lémeret and Stéphane Auriacombe (Alpine A110 GT4 Evo / CMR) will head to the final round of the season atop the class standings.

Beyond the competition, Magny-Cours also highlighted the links between the track and Alpine's road cars. Fans had the chance to check out the A290 and A390 in the paddock and get behind the wheel during supervised test drives. Meanwhile, around a hundred guests from the Alpine Store Bourges were immersed in the unique atmosphere of the French Circuit Championship and the Alpine ELF Cup Series, enjoying a reserved lounge, VIP tours and a grid walk.

QUOTES

Paul Alberto (race 1 winner)

“It’s been a very positive weekend. We both confirmed our pace in qualifying, which gave us confidence heading into the races. I put in a very good stint in the first race so that Gosia could finish the job without taking any risks. On Sunday, I was a bit behind the leaders when I got in the car, but I pushed all the way to the chequered flag to score valuable points. I’m also very pleased to be leaving with a lead that should secure me the Junior title. We’ll therefore head to the season finale determined to go for it and see what we can do in the general classification.”

Gosia Rdest (race 1 winner)

“It’s such a pleasure to partner with a driver as fast as Paul and to achieve such results together. A few small mistakes meant we finished less than a second behind the winners on Sunday, but that’s only made us even more hungry. Paul Ricard is one of my favourite tracks, so I can’t wait to get there and give it my all to fight for the title. On a more personal note, I’m returning to competition after a long break following the birth of my two daughters. It’s amazing to be this competitive whilst my youngest is celebrating her first birthday. Between my strong feelings for the Alpine A110 Cup and my Alpine A390 daily driver, the brand has a special place in my heart so I’m very happy to share my motorsport journey with the Alpine family.”

Romain Monti (race 2 winner)

“I’m delighted to end the weekend with the victory. It takes some of the frustration out of Saturday, as we had the potential to win. We let some big points slip away and missed out on the podium for the first time this season. We were determined to do well on Sunday. Rodolphe managed his stint perfectly, giving me a comfortable lead going into the final stages of the race, even though those behind us were running a solid pace. We still have a nice lead in the championship. The aim at Le Castellet will be to secure a good qualifying position before adapting our strategy to the situation. We’re in a fairly comfortable position; we know we have a joker, but we mustn’t waste it if we’re to win the title.”

Rodolphe Wallgren (race 2 winner)

"Overall, it was a good weekend. On Saturday, we clearly had the speed to win. I was the fastest on track, but we came in four seconds after the driver-change window had closed, which cost us a penalty. We climbed back to fourth place, but that cost us valuable championship points. We made up for it on Sunday with a strong race and the victory. This bodes well for the title. We’ll go at the season-finale with a 31-point lead so we’re quite confident and we’ll do our best to win.”

Louis Chazel (Chazel Technologie Course team manager)

“We are extremely happy to have clinched the team title ahead of the final round. This season, we decided to field a large number of cars to challenge at the very top. We are fortunate to have two crews able to fight for the win at every race. Now, they will battle amongst themselves at Le Castellet, and we can't wait to be there. This title is also very satisfying and a great reward for the entire team: the engineers, mechanics, coaches and everyone involved in this project. We are proud to be back at the top, as our last team title was in 2023. As for the drivers, Paul and Rodolphe are ideally placed for the Junior and AM titles. The #111 crew will go into the season finale with a slight advantage, but nothing is ever guaranteed. As it has been since the start of the season, there will be no team orders: everyone will have the same resources to enjoy themselves and go for it!”

CLASSIFICATIONS (SUBJECT TO TECHNICAL CHECKS)

Race 1

1. Paul Alberto – Gosia Rdest (Chazel Technologie Course #03) 32 laps
2. Lenny Kieffer – Julien Neveu (Schumacher GP #31) +2.150s
3. Anthony Pisano – Julien Paget (Chazel Technologie Course #09) +15.079s
4. Romain Monti – Rodolphe Wallgren (Chazel Technologie Course #111) +26.469s
5. Axel Constantin – Frédéric de Brabant (Chazel Technologie Course #123) +28.086s

Pole position: Paul Alberto (Chazel Technologie Course #03) - 1m48.627s

Fastest lap: Paul Alberto (Chazel Technologie Course #03) - 1m49.255s

Race 2

1. Romain Monti – Rodolphe Wallgren (Chazel Technologie Course #111) 32 laps
2. Paul Alberto – Gosia Rdest (Chazel Technologie Course #03) +0.457s
3. Anthony Pisano – Julien Paget (Chazel Technologie Course #09) +15.762s
4. Axel Constantin – Frédéric de Brabant (Chazel Technologie Course #123) + 1 lap
5. Alexandre Lopez – Pierre-Laurent Figuiere (Chazel Technologie Course #93) + 1 lap

Pole position: Jonathan Devaux (Race Cars Consulting #33) - 1m49.304s*

Fastest lap: Paul Alberto (Chazel Technologie Course #03) - 1m49.547s

* bonus point awarded to Julien Neveu (Schumacher GP #31)

General classification

1. Romain Monti – Rodolphe Wallgren 167 points
2. Paul Alberto – Gosia Rdest 136 points
3. Matéo Herrero – David Barrere 100 points
4. Frédéric De Brabant 92 points
5. Lenny Kieffer 86 points…

Juniors classification

1. Paul Alberto 230 points
2. Matéo Herrero 134 points
3. Lenny Kieffer 128 points
4. Alexandre Lopez 112 points
5. Anthony Pisano 104 points…

AM classification

1. Rodolphe Wallgren 217 points
2. David Barrere 128 points
3. Frédéric De Brabant 125 points
4. Julien Neveu 118 points
5. Anthony Fournier 42 points…

Teams classification

1. Chazel Technologie Course 189 points
2. Herrero Racing 115 points
3. Schumacher GP 111 points
4. Race Cars Consulting 40 points
5. Code Racing Development 27 points ...