With his outstanding efforts for Aston Martin in Bahrain, Fernando Alonso was the standout of preseason testing.
It “hurt a lot” for Aston Martin, according to Fernando Alonso, because Lance Stroll was unable to participate in the Formula 1 preseason testing.
After suffering wrist injuries in a bicycle accident, Stroll was unable to participate in testing and is uncertain to start the opening race. Reserve driver Felipe Drugovich took Stroll’s position in Bahrain.
Alonso believes that the disappearance of his new teammate, who has been with the Silverstone team since 2019, has affected Aston’s comprehension of the AMR23.
However, the team has not ruled out a surprise comeback for Sebastian Vettel to stand in until Stroll is capable of returning to racing responsibilities.
Alonso on the consequences of Stroll’s absence
Two-time World Champion Alonso responded when queried by F1 TV about the consequences of Stroll’s absences, “That hurt a lot.”
“It’s just maybe an Aston Martin thing [that I am not used to] and Lance could spot it, brake pedal feeling, power steering, all these things.
“I don’t know if this is a legacy from the team or if it is just new [for] this car.
“We cannot do it without him, [so] I hope he can come [back] very soon.”
On the first day of testing, Alonso came within 0.029 seconds of passing pacesetter Max Verstappen. The squad was perhaps fourth quickest behind the top three drivers and possibly on par with Mercedes.
“We feel there is a lot more to come from the car, that we didn’t have time yet [to find] in testing,” Alonso said.
“The car felt good on all three days, we’ve been experimenting a little bit with very different routes on [car] set-ups, and we always found positives on these new routes.
“So there is a clear indication that we need to change philosophy in many things on this car compared to last year’s car.
“That, obviously, is a concern in a way because we will need a couple of races to optimise the package.”
Below are some of the most well-known FORMULA 1 drivers’ apparels, all of which are available at reasonable costs. Visit our link now if you are interested in the racing clothing collection:
Aston Martin, F1, F1 2023, Formula 1, Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, Sebastian Vettel, AMR23, Bahrain