Hunt for redemption after Imola
Fresh from the difficulties experienced in Imola, in a race weekend that was transformed into a sort of long test to try to understand the problems that have recently begun to afflict the AMR24, Fernando Alonso is ready to try turn the page in Munich. The veteran from Oviedo has raced 19 times in his career through the streets of the Principality, obtaining two victories (2006 and 2007) and coming close to a historic third success last year, when only a super Verstappen managed to beat him in qualifying and then in the race.
A special weekend
The Saturday session is the most awaited by Alonso, who underlined in the press conference how – apart from the Sunday race – the Monegasque weekend is the most electrifying of the year. “Here qualifying is different and special: it is one of the best moments of the season – explained the Spanish champion – but the whole weekend is actually special. The only ‘bad’ day is Sunday, because there’s not much you can do and it can be boring, because you ‘just’ have to take the car home. But already in free practice everything becomes interesting, because the circuit evolves and you have to guess the grip that will gradually be available and the changes to be made with the setup“.
“Qualifying is the only one of the season in which you go at speeds in the corners that you have never gone to before in the rest of the weekend – explained Aston Martin’s #14 – and the adrenaline is very high. There are the sponsors, the VIPs: until Sunday is the best weekend of the year“. Compared to 12 months ago, however, when they dreamed of victory, Alonso and Aston Martin are aware that the reality is different: “Last year we had more hopes, while this year we had ups and downs. But we finished third in qualifying in China a month ago. If we can repeat that result on Saturday things can go well. We are still optimistic that we can have a good weekend. This weekend I have a good feeling“.
The simulator is not enough
Alonso then also made some interesting observations on the current situation of the teamsaying he is confident in the path that Lawrence Stroll is taking forward: “We’re not going in blind”, he ruled. However, from the height of his experience, the 1981 class from Oviedo highlighted how it is not possible to make progress by relying only on the simulator: “The simulator forgives you things that the track doesn’t. When you put the theoretical numbers in you tend to do better. The simulator is a great thingit is fundamental for engineers and is very useful for learning a track or other, but it’s still not the real car“.
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