Before traveling to Monza To compete in the 2022 F1 Italian GP, Fernando Alonso made a live broadcast on social networks with one of his sponsors, Fonetwork, to answer questions sent by his fans. In this ‘live’, the pilot confirmed that his current relationship with Alpine “it’s perfect” despite announcing his departure from Aston Martin in 2023 and mentioned ‘The mission’, term coined this year on social networks to refer to his green car challenge starting next year. The driver from Oviedo is sure that with Aston Martin he can do a great job and made his greatest wish: “I hope I get my 33rd victory in F1 with them”.
“Do I think I’ll do a good job at Aston Martin? Yes. I am confident that we will do a good job. They have all the necessary resources and investment, the talent, they have signed number 1 engineers from Red Bull and Mercedes. This year they started badly but many times starting badly gives you that spark of wanting to change the situation quickly and that ambition. Let’s try to turn the situation around. I have confidence.”
‘THE MISSION’
“Let’s not start again, because last year in El Plan there was enough trouble. This is always something created in social networks and I always try to follow what you indicated. If it’s the mission, then the mission. The good thing is to be in a James Bond movie now that I have the Aston Martin. Taking a street scene with an Aston Martin would make me happy. You need to discuss this with the team. I hope it comes out.”
Do I believe in The Mission? We have to believe. What happens is that in F1 you start in a position and you end up in that position. It’s not like in football that a small team can tie the big one. In F1 everything is very exact and mathematical and there are few moments of surprise. That’s the big problem. You can create an illusion and have an illusion but then in 24 races it can be so monotonous that you do the same thing and it’s frustrating for the fan”.
CURRENT RELATIONSHIP WITH ALPINE
“Ideal. No problem. I always say. For me it has been and will be my family and what Renault and I have achieved together will be part of our history whether we like it or not. For me, Renault will always be part of me and Alonso will always be part of them by winning two world championships. This is a group of extraordinary people and you can see it every weekend, that we are full. Nothing has changed. We will come to Abu Dhabi with all our strength and from that Monday we will walk different paths but always with respect and love”.
A PODIUM THIS YEAR?
“It was closer than other years, but at the same time you need the help of the cars in front. In Qatar there was a retirement or two and I was on the podium. And in Hungary, which was driven by Vettel and Ocon, there bowling game where four or five leading cars retreated. And this year we are there, we are 6 or 7 and if this year there is a touch with two ahead and one retire or whatever, we are there just to take that opportunity. There are 7 races left and I think we will have a chance, to see if we can take advantage of it”.
ESTIMATING YOUR TIME
“Satisfied. I’m happy with what happened. There’s always a risk when you come back and you don’t have two years in a sport. Because you might not adapt to the cars. I have two examples, with Kimi (Raikkonen) and Schumacher (Michael), that when they came back they paid off with a bit of work. And also for me the first 4 or 5 races last year I wasn’t very happy with the ‘feeling’ of the car, the power steering and I wasn’t comfortable with everything. That’s all the only point I have from this lap, in the first 5 races last year it was difficult for me to adapt. And I was very demanding and I want to go back and change it, not have 5 adaptation races. But this year I’m okay, full. In every race, I feel strong and we’re always among the third or fourth most important, and it’s a bit of a tonic that I had in the first stage. So now, I’m happy.”
“This year I think I will be happy with the level I reached after returning to F1. At the beginning of the season I lost 40 or 50 points because of engine problems and even then we are having a good championship. I remember in Barcelona I came with two points from ninth in Bahrain. It was a bad start and despite that we are having a good year”.
ASTON MARTIN WILL NOT BE IN THE WEC IN 2023
“It’s difficult. At the moment I’m quite focused on F1, and also Aston Martin. Next year we have 24 races plus training, sponsored events and you’re almost out of life and you sacrifice everything for something . As long as I’m in F1, running Le Mans is impossible and in the future I don’t know if I’ll try it. I’ve won both times I’ve tried it and I’m afraid if I try it again I’ll break the streak that.
TRIPLE CROWN
“Until F1, I don’t want to think about other categories and other things because the F1 calendar is very demanding and with so many races it’s full dedication. I don’t know about the future but right now it’s not on my mind.”
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
