After claiming his 100th podium in Saudi Arabia in confusing and controversial circumstances, Fernando Alonso is looking for a better result at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday than his two third-place finishes so far this Formula One season.
Maybe even his 33rd Formula One win and first in 10 years.
The Aston Martin driver was behind the Red Bull pair of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez in the first two races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia in what has been a one-sided championship so far.
Photo: AFP
Alosno said that the championship would become more competitive as the season progresses, but is pleased with how his Aston Martin is performing leading into the Melbourne race.
Practice sessions for the Australian Grand Prix are to begin today, with another session tomorrow prior to qualifying.
“At the moment we are extremely happy with the performance of the car, obviously. It was better than expected, especially in Jeddah,” Alonso said. “We arrived here with a good level of confidence, but, as I said, after a few events from now on, I think the cars will change a lot in a few areas through development.”
Alonso became the sixth driver in Formula One to reach the 100-podium milestone when he finished third in Saudi Arabia two weeks ago in a race with a contentious postscript.
He was hit with a 10-second penalty for being out of position at the start, dropping him to fourth behind Mercedes’ George Russell.
Alonso was later reinstated to third after a successful appeal to the FIA, arguing that stewards had not informed Aston Martin of the penalty within the regulated timing.
Russell said yesterday that it was a strange situation, but believes the correct call was made.
“Obviously it was the right decision. It was just a bit of a shame what a mess it was for everybody else,” Russell said. “I think ... we didn’t feel like we deserved to finish in third position, but obviously it is quite a nice feeling when it is handed to you. But then when it is taken away, it was just all a bit silly.”
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