“The Imola race shows us that the car is capable of doing things, but we also found it difficult to drive”. Mike Krack, Aston Martin Team Principalhe did not hide when he assured the press conference he held after the Imola GP in front of the international media, including MD. The leader of the green team confirmed what could already be predicted when he saw how Fernando Alonso left the track on Saturday twice in two consecutive sessions.
The evolutions it shows Aston Martin They did not immediately provide the expected results, although the team insisted that the data still needed to be analyzed and that it was too early to draw any immediate conclusions. In fact, they remember Crack what to Mexico 2023 The same thing happened and the following week his car was on the podium with a sensational Alonso in Brazil.
The walk was also very clear: “Everyone worked but not enough, so we have to keep working. There are other teams that seem more competitive. We, at the moment, are not. The feeling is the same all year… We need more, more, to reach the teams at the top.”
The main concern: trust is important in Monaco
But what is most worrying, especially about Monaco GP next week is the starting point of this article: the ability to drive a car. He AMR24with the new evolution package, is a very difficult car to drive when the driver wants to push it to the limit, too nervous, and does not give drivers the confidence to go to the maximum on a qualifying lap.
That is, the car, while new parts were added, worsened its strongest point at the beginning of the course, when it was very fast in a corner but sank in the race with greater wear and tear.
It is true that in Monaco, a special track with a lot of traffic, doing a good lap in time at the ‘qualy’ will save the weekend, because the starting position is everything in the Principality. But the problem for the Asturian can take a good turn.
To do this you need to push as hard as possible. To make a change in Monaco you have to go to the limit between the walls, which is as close to the barriers as possible to get the last tenth and tenth. But with a car as difficult to drive as the one at Imola, that can be very complicated. And that should be the main concern for Fernando in Monaco.
Alonso said
The Asturian himself expressed it this way in the international media corralito after Sunday’s race at Imola: “Depends on the vehicle. If you don’t behave well, in Monaco, going fast on that circuit is torture. We have to find the right set up, find the maximum performance (at a time)”.
“We have to concentrate on Saturday in Monaco because Sunday is like here (in Imola), where you can’t overtake. Everything will be on Saturday. I hope the perfect lap comes next Saturday.”The Asturian argued.
An important test with different settings
Fernando Alonso did a complete job and sacrificed his Sunday at Imola due to his late starting position to make the race a test.
Alonso came out with experimental settings, very crazy in the race. Not the best. And he did it to get important data for the team. The group needed this, and it was created so that the engineers could analyze the data collected and find the appropriate path for the setup and operation of the current package. Krack is right: In Mexico 2023, Alonso sacrificed the race to do a test and then in Brazil which paid off.
But this time, the rivals at the top are stronger and Red Bull, McLaren or Ferrari are not expected to lag behind. And the rest of the teams midfield has also improved a lot. But above all, the car does not inspire confidence. Reversing that point or adding as much drivability as possible to the car in the Principality will be key so that Alonso’s weekend is not “torture.”
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
