The car was driven by former Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas and rookie Zhou Guanyu.

The new-generation car had been internally allocated the designation C40 in anticipation of new regulations for the 2021 season.

[3] Bottas commented that the early version of the C42 ran on the Alfa Romeo simulator did not handle significantly differently to the 2021 cars.

It packages its Ferrari engine much the same as the works team, with wide sidepods featuring cooling louvres over the top.

[6][7] The C42 was the only car to weigh less than the original minimum weight requirement of 795 kg (1,753 lb).

[8] For the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, to coincide with the launch of the Alfa Romeo Tonale, the two C42s had a special livery, distinguished by the replacement of the red colour on the rear of the vehicle with the Montreal Green.