Alonso saw himself doing even better in qualifying

The end of the qualifying session in Monaco was chaotic. While Sergio Perez made a mistake before the tunnel, Carlos Sainz collided with him after seeing the yellow flags too late. But a few hundred meters ahead of them, it was Fernando Alonso who went straight at Mirabeau Haut, before hitting the protective barrier.

On a good pace, the two-time world champion of 2005 and 2006 asserts that without this mistake, he could have done better than his seventh place in the end.

Even though we took a big step forward with the car today and our qualification is good if we stick to our position on the grid, we could have been even better placed. During my first attempt in Q3, I climbed to fifth place.

“And given the evolution of the track, I think we could have maintained this position. Unfortunately, I locked the wheels during braking at Mirabeau. In Monaco, when you lose your concentration, even if it’s just for a fraction of a second, it can have big consequences. So, I apologize to the team,” he admitted.

Ocon mitigé translates to “mixed feelings about Ocon” in English.

The Spaniard is expecting a race with rain as a guest, which could spice up the Grand Prix. However, we will see what awaits us tomorrow. Especially if rain crashes the party, it could be very chaotic, with multiple safety cars and red flags. If it rains, I’m sure it will be great to watch on television, but very stressful inside the car!

His teammate, Esteban Ocon, finished in tenth place in qualifying, and he too believed he could have gained several positions without the red flag. After three challenging practice sessions where our performance was lacking, it is a tremendous feeling to make it into Q3 in Monaco. We knew that qualifying was key, and our objective was to find the right setup after testing different things yesterday and today. However, I am filled with mixed emotions as I was about to complete an excellent final lap before this incident interrupted the session.