The World Cup leader takes victory in the Austrian sprint for the Ferraris, while Alonso does not even start due to breakdown
Max Verstappen was overloaded with crowds in the second sprint of the season. An excited orange grandstand went wild with the comfortable victory of the World Cup leader, who had just a few meters of tension with the Ferrari.
In particular by Carlos Sainz. The man from Madrid made a good start in which he initially won second place from Charles Leclerc, although he was unable to beat Verstappen. In just a few corners he went from third to second and almost first, finally returning to the starting line. And it is that along the way he made a mistake defending Leclerc and then came up short in the fight with his partner.
The tension at Ferrari is latent. Although the Spaniard didn’t try hard to attack the Monegask, he did defend himself somewhat aggressively between teammates. Sainz ended up on the outside of the track to avoid contact, and although he was scared, everything was left behind in a fight between two drivers who wanted to succeed. It wasn’t worth more forcing: after all, the real race is today.
“It was a good fight; nice, as it should be,” Sainz summed up, showing the stripes little by little. He will have to confirm it in the race, when he will opt for at least one new podium.
The battle between Sainz and Leclerc does not help to narrow Verstappen’s lead over the rest of the drivers. The Dutchman is one step ahead when the mechanics hold him. Therefore, the race is an opportunity they cannot afford to waste. “The three of us are very similar, at the moment Max has the position to go first and the advantage of clean air. We have to get him out of that comfort zone he’s in and between the two of us we try to do different things,” Sainz explained later.
In a scheduled race over 24 laps, there were several standout images. The quiet victory of Verstappen, the battle between the Ferrari or Mick Schumacher at the end with Lewis Hamilton for eighth place (and the last point). But especially leaving Fernando Alonso.
He couldn’t even take the exit. The scene was Dantesque: Alonso’s Alpine stood on a stand, the thermal blankets on the wheels and the engine stalled. No one understood what was happening, but an electrical failure caused the engine to stall. The mechanics quickly tried to start the A522 with an external battery, but that also failed. Alonso, who would start in eighth and with the firm intention to reach the ‘top 5’ as target, rolled less than a meter.
Hees later explained to Alonso what had happened. “No battery or anything because I was disabled. Another problem with my car. Definitely another ultra-competitive weekend that we’re going to leave with zero points,” the Asturier continued, particularly disappointed and frustrated. Alpine let him down again.
Regardless of what he can achieve in the race, Alpine is suffering from a serious reliability problem that sadly mainly attacks the side of the Spaniard’s garage. They go often. “This year is generally one of my best years at a competitive level, I feel very good, fast and strong. But we weren’t lucky: we lost 50 or 60 points,” said Alonso.
Esteban Ocon, who finished sixth in this sprint, has 42 points to 28 for the Spaniard. It is far from what was expected, as Alonso’s competitiveness is clearly greater. The Spaniard Carrera’s serious mechanical problems, yes, Carrera, however, have also prevented him from achieving good results.
Opportunities always arise out of crisis, so Alpine may consider changing the power unit of Alonso’s car. In total, he will start last and he will not punish even more: they have enough punishment already.
Source: La Verdad
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