In his first race with Alpine, Alonso was forced to retire after plastic debris entered his brake duct. At the 2021 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix he finished in P11 after qualifying P15, with teammate Ocon finishing ahead in P10, but both were upgraded one position after Kimi Räikkönen was penalised, giving Alonso his first points of the season. At the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix, Alonso temporarily led the race before pitting and dropping to fourth, ahead of Lewis Hamilton. Teammate Ocon credited Alonso's defence against Hamilton with enabling him to achieve his first race victory. In August 2021, Alonso invoked an option to extend his contract for the season.