Fernando Alonso, the Spanish driver for the Aston Martin Formula 1 team, expressed his belief that the team is making positive strides this season. Alonso secured a fifth-place qualification for the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix, finishing within five-tenths of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who claimed pole position. Alonso outperformed McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, and both Mercedes drivers. The team provided Alonso with their latest car upgrades, which he utilized to secure a top-five starting position for the second time in 2024. Alonso has been impressed with Aston Martin’s progress, particularly as he contemplates his future in the sport. He stated that the team is currently analyzing their performance and will have the data to confirm and quantify the improvements made. Alonso expressed his satisfaction with the qualifying session, noting that he was unexpectedly competitive and only a few hundredths of a second behind Ferrari, with Leclerc and Piastri trailing behind. He also highlighted the significant progress the team has made since their last visit to the circuit six months ago, reducing the time gap from pole position by 1.5 seconds to just four-tenths. Overall, Alonso believes that Aston Martin is moving in the right direction.
Despite qualifying in the top five, Alonso was eager to emphasize that the hierarchy is often closer in qualifying and the true pace of the grid is revealed in race conditions.
The time difference in Q3 was 1.2 seconds, and a similar margin applied to the entire field in Q1, allowing drivers to achieve higher positions than expected.
“In qualifying, it is indeed true that everything is so tightly contested,” Alonso added.
“Today we saw Nico Hulkenberg and Valtteri Bottas, who were only three-tenths apart, which is remarkable.
“However, in the race, the genuine pace of the cars becomes evident.
“We are also facing some difficulties in this aspect – we are highly competitive on Saturdays but not as much on Sundays – so I believe our real pace is reflected on Sundays. On Saturdays, due to tire grip and other factors, some of the issues may be masked.”
Meanwhile, Alonso does not anticipate that the available tire compounds will be the decisive factor in tomorrow’s race outcome.
“I believe the true pace of the cars will be the key factor,” he assessed. “For instance, tomorrow Red Bull is expected to have a greater advantage and a smoother race compared to qualifying.”
As for Aston Martin, Alonso refrained from making a bold race prediction and instead adopted a more cautious approach, considering the team’s struggles in translating their one-lap speed into race performance.
“I tend to be conservative in my predictions, and when I look back at the first three races, we have been strong on Saturdays but not as much on Sundays,” he said.
“We may be out of position being in the top five, so if I am overtaken by Oscar and the two Mercedes, for example, I would consider it normal and expect to fall back into our rightful place.
“Let’s see what we can achieve; I am open to whatever the race brings. I am extremely proud and happy with today’s performance, and tomorrow is a new day.”