Gosia Rdest crowned Alpine Cup Series vice-champion with podiums in Le Castellet finale
Gosia Rdest wrapped up a remarkable comeback season with a second-place finish in the Alpine Cup class at Circuit Paul Ricard, securing the 2026 Alpine Elf Cup Series vice-champion title after another competitive weekend.
Gosia Rdest wrapped up a remarkable comeback season with a second-place finish in the Alpine Cup class at Circuit Paul Ricard, securing the 2026 Alpine Elf Cup Series vice-champion title after another competitive weekend.
Racing alongside Achille Leroy in the #3 Alpine, who replaced regular teammate Paul Alberto due to clashing commitments, the Polish driver delivered an impressive recovery drive in Saturday's race to climb from fifth to second in class before adding another podium finish in Sunday's season finale. The result marked an great achievement for Rdest, who returned to competitions in 2026 just months after the birth of her second child and finished the season among the championship's leading contenders.
Rdest arrived at Le Castellet second in the standings after a strong campaign that had already seen her make history as the first Polish driver and the first mother to win an Alpine Elf Cup race. Following two runner-up finishes at Nogaro, she claimed her breakthrough victory at Dijon-Prenois and added another podium at the same circuit, before an accident at Spa-Francorchamps interrupted her momentum. She bounced back at Magny-Cours with a victory and a second-place finish alongside Alberto, keeping her championship challenge alive heading into the final round. With Alberto unavailable for the season finale, Leroy joined Rdest in the #3 car as the pair looked to close the year on a high.
The duo began the weekend with seventh place in the opening practice session, recording a 2:19.662 before improving to 2:18.854 in FP2 to finish sixth in class. Leroy took the wheel for the first qualifying session and secured fifth place with a 2:16.312, while Rdest posted a 2:16.955 in Q2 to qualify second in the Alpine Cup class for Sunday's race.
Leroy started Saturday's race from fifth in the Alpine Cup class and made a strong getaway, moving up to fourth before an incident involving three cars on the main straight prompted an immediate safety car. The cars had been squeezed against the pit wall at the start, but Leroy avoided the trouble and emerged in a promising position.
The race resumed with 48 minutes remaining, with Leroy continuing to fight for overall positions in traffic shared with the GT4 field while targeting Lenny Kieffer ahead. The Alpine Cup battle remained closely contested, however, and Leroy dropped to fifth after being passed by Meteo Herrero on lap seven. As the pit window opened, he slipped further down to seventh in class before bringing the #3 Alpine into the pits on lap 12 to hand over to Rdest.
Rejoining in fifth, Rdest immediately began working her way forward. Despite encountering traffic, she moved into fourth and recorded a 2:18.1, closing to within a second of Jerome Thiery for the final podium position. She completed the pass on lap 15 and quickly set her sights on Robineau, who was running second.
Rdest's pace proved decisive. She moved into second place on lap 17, lapping almost two seconds per lap faster than Robineau during her charge through the field. Wallgren remained at the head of the Alpine Cup class, but Rdest settled into a consistent rhythm, maintaining a gap of around ten seconds to the leader and comfortably protecting her position through the remainder of the race.
The strong second stint secured a runner-up finish for Rdest and Leroy, a result that also confirmed the Polish driver's second place in the championship standings with one race remaining.
With the vice-champion title secured, Rdest lined up second in the Alpine Cup class for Sunday's final race of the season, aiming to finish the campaign with another strong result. The opening lap was busy but clean, and she held her position in the leading group while immediately applying pressure to Wallgren ahead.
Rdest remained within a second of the class leader throughout the opening stint, while also needing to keep Barrere behind. As the race progressed, she continued to close the gap, coming within two tenths of Wallgren on lap seven. With the pit window approaching, the Polish driver stayed out longer to maximise her stint, moving into the class lead when Wallgren made his stop on lap 12.
Rdest brought the #3 Alpine into the pits one lap later, on lap 13, handing over to Leroy. He rejoined second in the Alpine Cup class but soon dropped to third after Herrero moved ahead, leaving him with an approximately ten-second margin over Lopez. Leroy maintained a steady pace in the 2:17.8 range and managed the gap behind as he worked to secure another podium finish for the team.
A full-course yellow was deployed after an incident left Reynolds' Toyota stranded on track, with the race returning to green with four minutes remaining. Leroy faced a late challenge from Monti but held his ground through the closing stages to bring the #3 Alpine home third in class, giving Rdest another podium to close her season.
The Le Castellet finale provided a fitting conclusion to Rdest's return to races. Two podiums completed a campaign that had already featured a historic maiden victory and a strong challenge for the championship. Finishing second in the final Alpine Elf Cup Series standings, Rdest emerged as vice-champion in her best season in the championship to date.
