Fernando Alonso continues to break longevity records. Formula 1 and this weekend at Monza Kimi Raikkonen to match As the rider with the most 350 Grand Prix races. The 41-year-old Spaniard assures that at his best moment as a pilot he felt full and held the strings for a while: “I’ll stay for at least two days. or three more years, so I’m sure I’ll get to 400,” he warns.
On the eve of the Italian Grand Prix, Alonso insisted that sporting performance was the most important thing for him apart from the numbers: “I know the Grand Prix number I have because you remind me of that every weekend, but I don’t look too much at the stats. I’m happy to be in F1 for a few more years. But in any case, what these numbers show is my passion for the sport, my discipline’s performance at the highest level. If you don’t perform, you won’t be able to reach 400 races.Certainly”.
Last Sunday at Zandvoort, Fernando managed to complete ten races on points set during the Spanish GP at the Circuit de Barcelona. The Asturian driver celebrates his “consistency” after a nightmarish start to the season.
“While we haven’t been completely out of trouble in these 10 races, we’re on a good track right now. I remember Barcelona, we had to change the engine and I started last, then Austria came, the car didn’t start before the sprint race and I had to start last on Sunday. we still need to improve a lot of things for totally clean weekends and if we do that, we’ll probably continue to score in the next races”, predicts Alonso, who, as the fourth team on the grid, has decisively contributed to shifting the balance against McLaren.
“We are in the same position where we started the year. We are behind the top three teams, so our natural position is 7 or 8. We always need the help of the cars in front, sometimes because of penalties, like we started third on the grid in Spa and there will be more penalties here in Italy. Better we may have a starting position, but later in the race we will return to our natural position”, thinks Fernando. Alp prefers not to get too excited about finishing his career on the podium..
“The car went very well in Baku and Spa. I don’t understand why we can’t be competitive here, but I think there will be other races where we will be fast. The two-time Spanish champion, who will be relocating next year to start a new adventure at Aston Martin, warns: “I decided on them because their project is more ambitious than Alpine’s and I’m more confident and more affectionate than my current team”, Alonso Ditch.
penalties in Monza
The Italian Grand Prix kicked off with a surprise this Friday, as during the first free tests the list of drivers who will be penalized on the grid on Sunday became known for replacing their power unit entirely or partially. And among them is Max Verstappen, champion and elite leader of the World Championship, who will start the race in sixth place in best condition as long as he takes pole position tomorrow. will be penalized with five positions To replace the internal combustion engine (ICE) of your Red Bull RB18.
Red Bull opted for this change at Monza as a precaution, after Verstappen came out with a completely new engine in Belgium. The Italian track is suitable for overtaking and Max has already shown that flashbacks are not a problem for him.. At Spa, he started the race from 14th place on the grid and was already leading by a wide margin halfway through.
He won’t be the only one suspended on Sunday. Moreover carlos sainz will be penalized for installing a new gearbox and Sergio Pérez will have 10 seats, while Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas will start at the bottom of the grid. In the case of the Briton, he will mount the fourth power unit on his Mercedes.