ALONSO: “Good results cannot hide performance deficiencies.”
Fernando Alonso admits that Aston Martin is “struggling” and emphasizes the need not to focus on 2025 just yet.
Lawrence Stroll’s F1 team’s future looks bright and exciting, especially after Adrian Newey’s announcement as a shareholder and technical director partner. Aston Martin’s new Silverstone facility, along with its own wind tunnel and partnership with Honda, indicates there are many positive developments ahead. However, they are having a tough year.
After finishing sixth in Azerbaijan, Alonso completed the F1 Singapore Grand Prix in eighth place. It’s clear that McLaren, Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes have faster cars.
Alonso said, “Eighth place is better than we expected coming into Singapore. The qualifying was obviously very encouraging, and when we started in seventh, we imagined eighth or ninth was possible, and we eventually achieved that. The team executed a good strategy. We were behind Nico Hulkenberg and managed to pass him with an early pit stop strategy on lap 23, so overall, I think eighth place is the maximum we could achieve. Now we have a short break before Austin, and we need to find some performance in the car.”
“We are a bit behind compared to the top teams and in the middle of the midfield. We want to change this situation,” Alonso stated. He emphasized that it is “essential” for Aston Martin to continue its development in the last six races of the season instead of fully focusing on next year.
“We had good qualifying results at the last two street circuits, and since it’s difficult to overtake during the race, we solidified those positions. However, this doesn’t hide the performance deficiencies we’ve seen in the last few races.
“We are aware of this, and the team is working hard. We are here to earn points when the car performs well. Even when we struggle like now, we continue to score points because the team is doing its job, but they are also aware of the situation.”
