Is Aston Martin Back? Alonso 'Didn't Expect' To Be Competitive

Saturday, 02 March 2024 at 10:45

Updated at Saturday, 02 March 2024 at 11:07

The double world Champion Fernando Alonso reacted to the qualifying session ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix race, in which he ranked P6.

Aston Martin finished the 2023 season as the fifth-fastest team. Going into 2024, it was expected the British team could be one of the top five challengers, but nobody knew whether they could fight teams like Mercedes, Ferrari, or McLaren.

Well, after qualifying at the Bahrain International Circuit, it seems that Aston is right up there in the mix for the podium battle with all the top teams.

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While his teammate Lance Stroll didn't have the best session and couldn't get out of Q2, Fernando Alonso showed a solid pace, putting his car into P6 right behind Sergio Perez on Red Bull. The Spanish Matador said after the session:

"I feel great. I didn't expect we would be that competitive, to be honest. Winter testing was ok, but I think we are not in the pace of the leaders."

The Aston Martin driver stayed cautious ahead of the race, suggesting his team should be at a disadvantage compared to their rivals regarding the long-run pace. He continued:

"Free practice was competitive, but we found also last year that sometimes in free practice we are running in a different engine mode and in qualifying everything is a bit more realistic."

Similar to Max Verstappen, the 42-year-old F1 driver also expects a difficult race that will be all about managing the tires. It is expected drivers should opt for a two-stop strategy, but there can always be some surprises. Alonso added:

"It's going to be difficult in the race, very tight in a group which will damage the tires even more when you are in traffic. So, I think it's going to be a question mark for everyone. Let's see."