Fernando Alonso, who’s having a miraculous year so far, believes he can win a race this season. The Aston Martin star who is yet to taste a race victory in 2023, is hopeful of faring better against the indomitable Red Bull, but with only one rare criterion.
Even since he arrived at the British team, Alonso has tasted nothing but success. The back-to-back finishes on podiums and top half of the table statistics gave the fans a glimpse of his caliber and his incredible rise from the ashes.
But for now, the priority has changed for him and the team. After a series of podiums and top-five finishes, the main target for Alonso and Aston Martin shifted to the race win and the Asturian exactly knows how he can pull it off.
Alonso is hopeful for a win
The Spanish driver believes he can still win races against the mighty Red Bulls. Given, the Austrian team has been the superior team by far, there are still chances for him to do the unthinkable and take his tally from 32 to 33.
When asked by Sky Sports’ Martin Brundle if he can win a race or two, the two-time world champion stated that he very much can. Focusing on the criterion they need to work on and that is to be the fastest on the straights, the Asturian gave hope to his fans as well as the Aston Martin fans.
Speaking on this, he said as per Sky Sports F1, “Hopefully soon. I don’t know. We seem to have a car that is maybe not the fastest on the straights. We need to improve that, but we are very good on the corners.”
These moments! 🍾#MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/p0hzgSFOid
— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) May 7, 2023
As the 41-year-old already emphasized how they need to improve their challenger against the RB-19, they can also bank on the disadvantage the defending champions have over the cost cap penalty.
However, the former Ferrari star also joked about winning a race differently. If the two Red Bulls crash to take each other out, that can be a good chance to utilize and seal the victory, Fernando Alonso quipped. “A double DNF would be nice,” joked the Spaniard after the conclusion of the 2023 Bahrain GP.
How Alonso can win under rare circumstances?
Coming at 41 years old and being the oldest driver on the grid, the Asturian sits pretty at P3, behind the Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez. However, he’s still short on wins.
The Asturian has not tasted a race victory for almost a decade as his last win has come back in 2013 with Ferrari in the Spanish Grand Prix. From there on, he is in the hunt for wins, as well as championships.
Miami next . 😇 @AstonMartinF1 #f1 #baku #astonmartin pic.twitter.com/24iVnHFgBV
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) April 30, 2023
Speaking about the rare criterion, Alonso believes the team should target tracks like Monaco, Budapest, or Singapore where maneuverability works more than straight-line speed.
However, none of them were capitalized. But, coming in 2023, the stint with the Silverstone-based team is the best shot to his race victory, given the AMR23 is still better than most of its competitors leaving RB-19 aside.
All in all, the championship win might be too much of an ask despite having four podiums in five races, but race wins by Fernando Alonso is very much possible and will, of course, be a treat to watch.
