Alonso: “The improvements are good, I’m happy”

The red flag came out in full Canada Q3because of the accident Oscar Piastrisuppressed Fernando Alonso opt for at least the second starting position this Sunday. He had to settle for third position, because when the session resumed, it rained heavily and the time would not change. This Sunday, in a race expected to be dry, he will start after the ‘poleman’ Max Verstappen and a Nico Hülkenberg were clearly out of position that should not be a rival of the Spanish. Behind him are the two Mercedes, so this event will be a great first litmus test of the performance that Aston Martin’s new parts can bring to Fernando.

For now, The Spaniard made sure he was happy with the evolutionary package and that, although you have to wait for the next races to find the exact settings to maximize your potential, this Sunday they can help you get closer to Verstappen.

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“The new pieces? It’s too early to say. We haven’t tested them enough and we still need to optimize the car’s setup with this new package. I think that in Austria or Silverstone (in the next two races) we can get his maximum. Our FP2 was too short yesterday, but I’m happy with the new parts, they’ve been good, they’ve done what we expected and that’s a positive sign.”he assured.

“We’ll see in the dry race if we can stand up to Max. I don’t think we’re at that level yet. But maybe instead of 20 or 30 seconds away, we might be closer.”he added.

“This Sunday, we have a chance to put some pressure on the Red Bulls. So far they have had a very easy win and I hope they have to push hard this time. To put pressure on them you have to be two seconds and not 20 behind them”, he laughed as he finished at the foot of the track.

CLASSIFICATION AND THE RED FLAG

In addition, Alonso highlighted how difficult the qualifying session was and was happy to have achieved third position in a ‘qualy’ where it was very easy to make mistakes. “It was a difficult qualifier in terms of choosing the right tire and the right moment. Third place is a good starting position”, he declared at the foot of the track.

“We had bad luck with the red flags. In Q1 there was one second to cross the finish line when the red flag came out. And in Q3 it was four seconds before crossing the finish line. But I am very happy because it has become a very complex quality and you have to constantly communicate with the team. There are times when you feel things in the car but then in the pitlane you see things differently. We have an opportunity to get a lot of points and I am very happy”, commented the Spaniard in a press conference.