Here is the thing about raw talent: sometimes it just needs a roof over its head. Victor Martins is making the leap from single-seaters to prototype competition, signing with the Alpine Endurance Team for the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship.
The Frenchman brings a heavy resume from the junior open-wheel ladder. Across three full campaigns in FIA Formula 2, he collected 18 trips to the rostrum—three of them on the top step—and a best championship finish of fifth. Add in his time as a member of the Williams Driver Academy last year, plus Formula 1 test sessions for both Williams and Alpine, and you have a driver who has spent years cutting his teeth at a high level.
Victor will bring his natural speed, but also his experience at the highest level and his technical understanding, all of which will allow us to continue progressing collectively.
Now, his single-seater days are taking a back seat. But if you are wondering how he will handle a heavy Hypercar machine, his audition in late 2024 offers a pretty clear hint. During the FIA WEC's annual Rookie Test in Bahrain, the 24-year-old Essonne native hopped into the famous French manufacturer’s A424 and immediately went to work. Despite having zero prior endurance experience, he came out-of-the-blocks flying, topping the rookie timesheets in the morning and finishing the day third-fastest amongst the newcomers.
He steps into a six-driver, two-car line-up at Alpine. Series returnee António Félix da Costa is already confirmed in the #35 A424—which triumphed in the championship’s milestone 100th race at Fuji in Japan last September—while Frédéric Makowiecki stays on-board the podium-finishing #36 entry.
“Joining Alpine Endurance Team in the FIA World Endurance Championship is a significant step in my career and a responsibility I take very seriously,” Martins commented. “Alpine is a brand with a strong racing heritage and clear ambitions at the highest level of endurance racing.
“Competing in my first 24 Hours of Le Mans with this team is a huge motivation, and I’m looking forward to working closely with everyone to push performance, build consistency and contribute to the long-term success of the programme.”
Alpine Team Principal Philippe Sinault clearly sees the potential in the former FIA Formula 3 Champion. “We are obviously very pleased with this collaboration, which represents a strong and exciting opportunity for the project,” Sinault echoed. “Victor will bring his natural speed, but also his experience at the highest level and his technical understanding, all of which will allow us to continue progressing collectively.”
Sinault added, “Since Victor took part in the 2024 Rookie Test with the A424, there has been a clear mutual desire to work together. We share the same mindset and approach, and I have no doubt that his integration into the team will be swift and that he will very quickly be able to contribute to improving our overall performance.”
The battle for honours will begin with the ten-hour curtain-raising contest in Qatar on 28 March, followed by races at Imola, Spa-Francorchamps, the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans, Interlagos, COTA and Fuji, building up to the traditional eight-hour season finale in Bahrain.
