After a thoroughly underwhelming weekend in Silverstone, Fernando Alonso assured fans that Aston Martin will be back at their best at the Hungaroring. However, F1 expert Tom Bellingham believes the Silverstone-based team along with Alonso will fail to light up the Hungarian GP, despite the Spaniard’s assurances.
Aston Martin made amazing strides over the winter break. They finished P7 in the championship standings last year but worked hard to become the second-fastest team on the grid in the opening stages of this campaign. Unfortunately for them, in the last few race weekends, they seem to have been overtaken by Mercedes and Ferrari.
They lost P2 to Mercedes in the constructors’ standings, and have Ferrari to watch out for behind them. Aston Martin’s sudden drop in form could be due to their poor development, because the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari improved considerably after upgrades were brought in. Aston Martin failed considerably in their department.
As of now, they are not the second-fastest team on the grid anymore. However, Alonso is of the opinion that he will finish in the top three at the Hungaroring. However, according to Bellingham, it seems unlikely that they’ll show the strong pace which they did in the initial days of the season.
Fernando Alonso hype will not be enough for Aston Martin
Renowned expert Tom Bellingham recently discussed the upcoming Hungaroring race on the P1 with Matt and Tommy podcast. While predicting the outcomes, Bellingham revealed that Alonso’s hype will not be enough to save Aston Martin in Hungary.
He said, “Aston Martin so difficult. In the last couple of races, the Aston Martin hype has really died down.” He emphasized how the performance graph has gone down for the British team, whereas their rivals seem to be on an upward trajectory.
What an honor to share the podium with these F1 legends. Thanks Canada🇨🇦💚. Enjoyed every single lap . #f1 #canada #montreal #astonmartin pic.twitter.com/l5ZJtNLSTS
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) June 18, 2023
Additionally, Bellingham also mentioned that Alpine could be the surprise package in the coming races. Even if they don’t manage to outjump Aston Martin, they can surely match McLaren, who were the biggest surprise in Silverstone two weeks ago.
Alpine might surprise everyone in Hungary
With Red Bull dominating, and Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, and Aston Martin fighting to be the second fastest team, Alpine might surprise everyone at Hungaroring, as per Tom Bellingham.
The Enstone-based team has great memories around this circuit in the recent past. They won the 2021 Hungarian GP, which was Esteban Ocon’s first win inF1. Interestingly, Fernando Alonso had an instrumental role to play there, as his brilliant defensive work held Hamilton off.
However, talking abut the front of the grid, a Red Bull win is most likely on the cards once again. The RB19 still looks unstoppable, as does Max Verstappen. The Dutch driver could very well be on his way to winning his ninth race of the season this Sunday. On top of that, Red Bull will be introducing new upgrades to their car this weekend. This will reportedly make them two-tenths faster than they already are.
