Aston Martin’s start of the 2023 F1 season has been one of the most fascinating stories in recent times. From a lowly P7 last year to directly in contention for podiums and eventually the wins, the rise of the British team has been mighty. However, with time they lost their grip on the performance and, therefore, the advantage over the grid. Now, Aston Martin bosses revealed the exact reasons why Fernando Alonso could no longer compete for podiums.
During the first few races into the season, Alonso amassed as many as six podiums. His performance with the AMR23 was so startling that there were talks about the Spanish driver’s push to claim his 33rd win very soon.
However, it all went downhill after the Canadian Grand Prix. It was the last race weekend where the Asturian was on the podium. After the Montreal race, the competitors such as Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren made rapid developments with their cars and left Aston Martin behind.
Furthermore, the track types also didn’t help them either, as the AMR23 was weak around the circuits like Silverstone or Hungaroring. The two-time world champion, talking about their dip in performance, revealed that the team needs to find out where they are lacking against the rivals.
Aston Martin: Problems and rectifications
Mike Krack, the team principal, and Tom McCollough, the performance director at the Aston Martin F1 team, have recently opened up on the issues with the AMR23 that hampered its performance.
According to Junaid Samodien on Twitter, Krack and McCollough reportedly told Sky Sports F1 expert Ted Kravitz that the Canadian Grand Prix upgrades confused the entire team. The confusion then led to the balance issues with AMR23.
Double points for the team in a tough weekend. I also made a mistake in the second pit stop that caused a slow stop, sorry 😵💫! We lacked pace to fight higher up, but heads down and we know what we have to do! This team never gives up💪! Can’t wait to fight again in Spa next… pic.twitter.com/TUlFoVldy8
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) July 23, 2023
Following this, the top bosses confirmed that they are backtracking and will bring upgrades to fix the issues. Admittedly, the Montreal race saw Fernando Alonso finish in P2, whereas Lance Stroll finished the race in P9 after starting in P16.
Therefore, the upgrades seemed to have worked. However, there was a dip in performance after the said race, and as a result, they are now far behind leaders Red Bull. Moreover, Mercedes overtook them for P2 in the Constructors’ championship. As for Ferrari, they also have closed their gap by just five points after the Belgian GP race.
Stroll, Alonso, and Aston Martin’s recent story
Lawrence Stroll has already remarked that his son, Lance Stroll, would close down the gap of his teammate Fernando Alonso. He said this as he believed the Canadian driver had regained his form. However, this was far from reality as Stroll finished the Spa Franchorchamps race in P9, whereas the Asturian finished way above in P5.
But, in the end, Alonso’s P5 didn’t help as Lewis Hamilton finished the Belgian GP race in P4. And hence, he is now just a point shy of the two-time world champion in the driver’s championship.
A solid end to our weekend. 🏁
Bouncing back, the team brings home 12 crucial points and a top 5 finish ahead of the summer break.#BelgianGP pic.twitter.com/cPpOhs0tGk
— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) July 30, 2023
With that said, Red Bull, Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren have brought significant upgrades to develop their car. Compared to them, Aston Martin is still lacking thanks to their early advantage, which is why they are still in P3.
According to reports, Aston Martin hinted that they might copy Red Bull in the coming days, a move similar to Mercedes. It’ll be interesting to see if they get back the form they lost when the sport returns after a month at Zandvoort.
