Aston Martin Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso expressed his relief after securing third place in a tense Sprint Qualifying session at the Chinese Grand Prix. Alonso took advantage of unpredictable weather conditions to outperform both Red Bull and Ferrari. This marked a significant achievement for the Spaniard, whose last pole position in wet conditions was in 2012 at Hockenheim. He finished behind Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton to secure third place on the starting grid. Alonso admitted that the rain in the final session favored Aston Martin’s performance, as he initially placed seventh in SQ1 before dropping to eighth in SQ2. He described the session as stressful, with changing track conditions making it challenging to judge grip and risk. Despite the difficulties, Alonso was extremely happy with the outcome.
Alonso did not use the Soft compound during the practice session and ended up placing 19th, more than two seconds behind his teammate Lance Stroll. When asked about the team’s performance in long runs, Alonso stated that it was too early to determine but would become clearer during the upcoming races, including the Sprint race and the main race on Sunday. Stroll, on the other hand, was unable to replicate his strong practice run and ended up with the slowest time in the second stage, resulting in a 15th place starting position for the Sprint race. Stroll expressed his disappointment, citing a lack of grip as the main issue. He acknowledged that there would be limited opportunities for improvement in the upcoming race.