“Everything has been advanced. We have been the second fastest car on the track after Red Bull, we didn’t even imagine, really”, said Fernando Alonso drenched in champagne at Sakhir. Aston Martin surprised everyone, in addition to the fact that Fernando had to overcome the two places lost at the start to be third, and it is the only team that receives the pujas in this start of the championship by Red Bullwhich is usually a symptom of concern that apparently for now neither Ferrari nor Mercedes produces.
If Fernando had come out later, surely he would have been a threat to us.
Because it’s completely unusual to see Adrian Newey drop some acid about someone in his usually measured speech. The F1 guru is above good and evil… almost always. Yesterday I commented that “Aston has made an obvious leap, a great job, but you have to keep in mind that this is not a normal asphalt, it is not usual and going fast here does not guarantee you will do it in future races.“. Notice to boaters.
It was much harder Marko Helmutmore or less insisting that the greens have ‘copy-paste’ Red Bull and thus “We’ve seen three Red Bulls on the podium, only the last one with a different engine! (Aston Martin is fitted with a Mercedes power unit)”I commented hurtfully. The arrival of Dan Fallows, former aerodynamic manager for the champions, plus seven other engineers and assets from various teams, in addition to signing a two-time world champion with a desire (they already had a four-time champion back), has made this leap. Something that is not illegal and that they themselves did a few decades ago to get where they are now.
His “you have to see what memory some have”, in a derogatory reference to Fallows, It sounds like a tantrum of someone who sees that a new rival has grown, with a similar car, another two-time champion, the same money or more, and spectacular inertia.
Alonso’s first TikTok after being third: a notice and the comments setting fire
another goes for design
Alonso gave the key to what may be the reason for being a chipped tooth in the perfect smile of the champions. “We have gone the other way in the design of the car, while Red Bull or Ferrari have followed the same, refining and improving. On our side we still have a lot of room for improvement, the project is new and we are sure to find many benefits in the coming months.“, he pointed after the Sakhir podium.
And above all that the factory is not finished yet, neither the tunnel, nor the completed signings. Everything is half done, and with this they are already prowling for a victory that is a matter of racing. “I think that achieving two or three Fernando”, concedes Verstappen, who has yet to face him on track for wins.
“His fight with Hamilton was incredible. It was a tough matchup, but fair. Really old school. If Fernando had come out ahead, surely he would have been a threat to us”, Marko closes. He finished 38 seconds behind Verstappen, having to pass three or four (if we count Bottas) on the track. With clean air, how far would he have gone? .
