Aston Martin has told Fernando Alonso that he must “hold on” as his team is struggling to find the time to make the improvements it needs.
Alonso made no secret of his frustration after last weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix, in which the AMR24’s lack of performance left him and teammate Lance Stroll out of the points.
Later, he suggested that the team should focus on making developments that work, rather than talking about its potential.
“We can’t get too frustrated,” Alonso said. “It’s time to work harder, talk less and produce more. That’s what we want to do.”
Aston Martin is well aware of some of the car’s weaknesses, including understeer in long corners, but it’s not easy to eliminate them.
And while it is hoped that upcoming developments – including an update that could be ready for the Hungarian Grand Prix – will improve things, Aston Martin says its situation is made more complicated by the calendar, which is packed with commitments in this phase.
With F1 heading to Austria and the second event of a hat-trick, before back-to-back races in Hungary and Belgium, the team explains that it was not easy to find the time to take advantage of the knowledge learned in each race and then work towards make improvements.
Team principal Mike Krack said: “That’s one of the problems that comes up. There are five races in six weeks.”
“We understood quite a few things after Monaco, Imola and also in Canada, where among other things we scored 14 points with the same car, but it’s a matter of solving problems and there’s no time. This is the problem main at the moment”.
“So we have to hang in there, get the best out of the car every weekend and bring these parts in as quickly as possible.”
While Aston Martin has had a troubled past, with updates that didn’t deliver the desired results, there seems to be a degree of confidence that the new releases arriving before the summer break will be better.
Mike Krack, Team Principal, Aston Martin F1 Team
Photo by: Francois Tremblay / Motorsport Images
And if Alonso believes that the next updates can make a difference, Krack also said he was confident.
“I share his optimism, but I have to share the optimism too,” he said. “From what I’ve seen, it’s encouraging. We clearly have a better understanding than we had before. This makes us confident for the future.”
“We will continue to bring parts as soon as they are ready, starting from the next races. So we must not only focus on Budapest, but we must try to improve as quickly as possible.”
Krack also said he has no fear that team owner Lawrence Stroll’s patience is wearing thin, as the team has failed to realize its full potential so far in 2024.
When asked about the personality of Stroll, who is very tough in his demands on what he wants to see, Krack replied: “Yes, but he is also very knowledgeable about how Formula 1 works, how Formula 1 operates.”
“So even if he’s not patient, he knows that it takes time to make the pieces. So he’s up to speed on everything and now it’s up to us to deliver them.”
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