Fernando Alonso doesn’t believe Aston Martin can repeat the 2023 surprise and finish on the podium at the season opener in Bahrain. The Spaniard was the big sensation at the first race of the new season last year and surprisingly took third place with Aston Martin behind the two Red Bulls.
What no one knew at the time: The result wasn’t supposed to be a blip, as Alonso even finished on the podium six times in the first eight races of the season. However, based on the impressions of the test week in Sachir, he sees his team as being a bit away from this form.
“I think it seems unrealistic at the moment,” he said when asked about a possible podium in Bahrain next weekend.
Aston Martin had had a relatively unremarkable test over the past three days. Alonso and team-mate Lance Stroll did not appear at the top of the top 5 on any day, but rather remained under the radar – in the weekly ranking, both drivers only took positions eleven and 15.
However, that doesn’t mean anything, because you shouldn’t put much emphasis on the best times during the test drives. The racing simulations and long runs are more important, but they are also difficult to compare because nobody knows the exact amount of fuel in the cars.
However: If you compare Alonso’s stints with Leclerc’s first stint in the racing simulation on the C3, then with a time of 1:37.7 minutes he was only marginally slower than the Ferrari driver, and the tire management on the AMR24 also looks pretty consistent .
Formula 1: Alonso sees progress at Aston Martin
In general, Alonso is also very satisfied with the improvements to the car: “I feel a little more performance, especially in the fast corners, more downforce, more grip,” he says. “And when braking, the car is also a step forward compared to last year.”
“The sensors clearly indicate that we have more downforce and more grip in this year’s car, that’s all a good sign,” says Alonso.
But why is he so skeptical about a podium in Bahrain?
“We have no idea and don’t know what the others are doing,” he says. “The car is a step forward, but everyone normally takes it over the winter. We have to see how big ours is compared to the others.”
“I don’t have a crystal ball,” Alonso continued. “I just see the data, and the data says that this car is better than last year. If we are 0.2 seconds faster, but everyone else is a second, then we are 0.8 seconds behind. We will first ask that question can answer next week.”
Aston Martin more in focus
Alonso also knows that Aston Martin is more in focus now than in 2023 and that a good result now wouldn’t be a big surprise. “Last year there were no expectations for us and it was a surprise that we were so competitive.”
“This year we may not be as fast as last year, and there are already a lot of eyes on us whether we are fast or not. It will therefore be more difficult to surprise,” said the two-time world champion.
“But we are doing our best. There are 24 races and we will have to be a little more consistent than last year. I plan to develop the car a little more consistently and faster. This is the normal growth in a team that will become world champions in the future want.”
Alonso feels fit, but…
He himself emphasizes that he is absolutely ready for the new season. “I feel better than ever. Personally. Physically. And mentally too. I’m ready for this year’s challenge.”
However, he also knows that this does not guarantee good results: “I was super fit, happy and motivated in 2016 and then got 15 points,” he alludes to his time at McLaren, where he had eleven points in 2015 and 17 points in 2017 – In 2016 there were 54.
“In this sport it doesn’t always matter how you feel and what you do,” said Alonso. “I think it’s going to be very close. The whole field will be within two or three tenths. You can fight for a podium or maybe get knocked out in Q1. So there’s a lot of pressure on everyone.”