An exciting qualifying session in Miami ended with Sergio Perez taking the pole position ahead of the Grand Prix. Behind the Mexican, the Spanish duo of Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz will start the race from second and third respectively. This means that the top three starters for the race are all Spanish speaking, which made Alonso especially proud.
During the press conference after qualifying, Alonso told the reporters that he will answer the questions in Spanish. Usually, all drivers talk in English, with it being the common language across all the teams in the paddock. With two people sitting next to him who also converse in Spanish, Alonso wanted to speak in his native language.
“We are the second most spoken language on the planet,” said Alonso as quoted by RBR Daily on Twitter. “And we deserve to speak Spanish.”
This is the first time Perez, Alonso, and Sainz have shared a podium together, which made a huge section of the fanbase, especially the Spanish-speaking audience, particularly happy.
Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin looking for a win
In terms of race pace, no car as is fast as the Red Bull in 2023. However, Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack insists that since Fernando Alonso is starting from the front row, he will go for the win. Nevertheless, if they fail to match the pace of Perez’s Red Bull, P2 is the bare minimum Krack expects.
“The opportunity is there if you start from the front row,” said Krack as quoted by Rediff. “If you start from the first row your aim has to be to win the race.”
Meanwhile, Alonso’s teammate Lance Stroll failed to make it out of Q1, which was shocking considering the Aston Martin’s pace on display. A bold tyre strategy put forward for Stroll failed, which kept the Canadian driver out of the top 15. Stroll will start the race from 18th on the grid, but Krack expects him to make up places to get himself in the top 10.
Golden opportunity for Sergio Perez
Ahead of lights out, Sergio Perez will be the only driver ahead of Alonso. Perez has had a great start to the 2023 season, and has an opportunity to lead to F1 world championship standings for the first time in his career.
Perez is currently P2 in the championship standings with 87 points to his name, and his just 6 points leader, Max Verstappen. Verstappen made a mistake on his first push lap, which put him in ninth place. Unfortunately, since the session was red-flagged after Charles Leclerc’s crash and not restarted, the Red Bull ace couldn’t get another lap time in.
As a result, Perez was able to hold on to his pole position and will start eight places ahead of his teammate. The Mexican driver will be looking to hold on to his lead, and make a jump on Verstappen in the world championship standings.
