Fernando Alonso made an outstanding comeback at this past weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix as he finished in second place. This was the Spaniard’s first podium in five races and his first since the Canadian GP over two months ago. Despite having made such a strong comeback, a journalist on the most recent episode of the F1 Nation podcast has claimed that the 42-year-old may not be able to replicate such a high level of performance at the next race in Monza.
Even though some experts have raised doubts, Alonso believes that his team is not far from winning a race. While speaking to his race engineer after his second-place finish at Zandvoort, the Oviedo-born driver said, “We will win one race soon. We are getting closer“.
F1 journalist explains why Aston Martin may struggle at Monza
While speaking on the most recent episode of the F1 Nation podcast, a journalist explained that one of the main reasons why Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin performed well at Zandvoort was because of how strong they have been on high-downforce circuits this season. Hence, he reveals that it would surprise him if the team finished on the podium at Monza.
“Aston Martin looked a lot better this weekend than they looked in the last four or five weekends or so. But then this is a very special track (Zandvoort) and they have been pretty good when it came to high-downforce circuits. I would be surprised if they finished on the podium at Monza, to be honest,” the journalist explained.
It is pertinent to note that Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack is not too optimistic about his side’s chances either going into the final stages of this season. The 51-year-old has urged caution and made it clear that he still does not know where the British outfit stands at the moment.
Mike Krack unsure if Fernando Alonso can carry on clinching podiums
While speaking in his post-race interview, Mike Krack was asked if the team was now moving in the right direction with Fernando Alonso clinching a podium. In reply, the Luxembourger said, “I think it is too difficult to say just straight after the race, because we have to be honest. We have a change in conditions mostly all the time and this doesn’t give you a good read of the pecking order“.
Hence, the 51-year-old believes that the team needs to evaluate their progress over a few more races before they can be certain of having made a step forward. F1 will next visit the iconic Monza this weekend before moving to Asia for the Singapore Grand Prix from September 15 to 17. Since both these circuits are very different, it could help Aston Martin get an idea of where they stand at the moment.
