The presentation of the Asturian driver’s new single-seater confirms the work behind it and the commitment of Stroll senior to finally realize a winning project in the medium term
The slogan with which Aston Martin has prepared the new 2023 Formula 1 season perfectly sums up the desire and challenge ahead. After a few disappointing years, the AMR23 was presented this Monday as a break with the past. It is no coincidence that “new energy” they promised in the networks before showing the world a car that, regardless of whether it turns out good or not, is worked to the limit.
Dan Fallows, the guy who fundamentally designed this car, talked about a 95% change from last year’s car. He is right, and that only a first version has been seen, which, how could it be otherwise, will change in the tests. A much elongated and more refined nose, narrow and aggressive side pontoons with certain reminders of concepts already seen in the 2022 Mercedes or even in the Red Bulls, a radically redesigned floor… and a mystery. That they didn’t show the back of the car is quite a statement of intent: there’s ‘tomato’ there.
Lawrence Stroll promised that this project already has all the ingredients to win: people, enthusiasm, work and tools. The new headquarters in Silverstone is a new laboratory where everyone finds an energy they had not seen before. Team boss Mike Krack summed it up with a smile in what will be his second year at the helm of the British squad. “We have a big ambition and although Aston Martin is our third year, I see a lot of possibilities and I see it all together. Last year we have seen a lot of progress and we have improved in all areas. Everyone has worked hard this winter,” he said.
That is perhaps the best hope. Because the team and the riders, with a smiling Fernando Alonso at the helm, know where they stand and where they are going. The desire they may have cannot take away from what other teams can show, such as a Red Bull starting as a big favorite and the doubts of Ferrari or Mercedes that will be seen in the coming days. Although Alonso warns that this car should only be the basis, the root of a winning car, they do not settle for much.
Alonso’s new adventure is as risky as it is daring. The team built on the foundations formed by Eddie Jordan decades ago, in a genealogy that has led to this day, has never aspired to be champions, and the few wins it achieved have been very sporadic and under very difficult conditions. circumstances specific. They don’t even have consistent podium finishes, which is also not the goal the team should be aiming for.
From the words that were commanded during the long presentation of the AMR23, whether Alonso, Stroll (father/owner and son/pilot), Mike Krack (boss) or Dan Fallows (technical manager), this year could be a breaking point. The car shown in the presentation is a first version of the one that will already be used in testing in Bahrain, which will in turn change for the first race of the year, when Alonso will debut in his sixth team (fifth if we count Renault/Alpine as the same unit, which it actually is).
So far, the driver with the most kilometers covered and contested grand prix in Formula 1 history has 32 victories, 22 pole positions, 23 fastest laps, 98 podiums, two world championships and 75 retirements, which is not a few in total are aspects in the 19 seasons it has played in the league. For the twentieth, in which he will also have Stroll as his 20th other partner, there is a buzz in the networks that has focused on this new wave of Alonso youngsters still crawling into the Asturian’s heyday: will the 33rd win come ?
3 has become a magic number for Kabbalists, looking for a statistic to cling to in the face of an eventual difficult campaign. And it is that, in short, beyond the surprise Aston Martin can produce and the certainty of being consolidated under well-armed foundations, with financial and personal strength, Alonso’s story has shown that when the smoke from the fireworks of expectation will be to check to what extent we should lower the illusions and settle down.
Fernando Alonso is one of the new faces of Aston Martin and all eyes are on him. The driver with the most races in Formula 1 history is an “example to all”, as Lawrence Stroll explains, who believes they have all the ingredients to reach the milestone they have been aiming for for so long. After the transition from a team of 350 to 800 employees, Aston Martin has new energy. And that goes beyond the slogan, to the point that Alonso does not rule out finally winning his third title here. “It’s a possibility… but not this year; I’m honest. I stand with my feet on the ground. I’d be lying if I said we’re going to fight for wins but we want to have a good car to start with and work and develop it throughout the season and maybe in the second half of the year we can get closer to the top ”, admitted the Spaniard. Best of all, there are changes. The car has been worked on and the feedback it has received has been very positive. Because this project that Alonso has joined is not only short-term, but it is also designed to become a benchmark later on. “It is the basis for future success. We are not satisfied with a fourth, third or second position, so this is the path we have to take,” added the man from Oviedo.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
