Alonso expects another difficult weekend for Ferrari

After a Chinese Grand Prix from which he could only leave with two points, Fernando Alonso has little hope of seeing the Scuderia do much better in Bahrain: « I know very well that in Sakhir, we can expect another difficult weekend, which is natural partly due to the characteristics of the track and because the car will be the same as the one we had in Shanghai. »

However, the Spaniard has good memories of Bahrain: Both the Scuderia and I have good memories in Bahrain: the team has won here four times and I have won three, the last time during my debut with the Prancing Horse. But the past holds no value in sports, and this weekend our goal will be to limit the damage.

Double winner in Sakhir, Felipe Massa naturally also has fond memories and is happy to return, with his family, even though the conditions are currently delicate in the country: « The Sakhir circuit is one of my favorites. […] Above all, I must say that I have always enjoyed coming here, even on days when we had long private test sessions. The people have always been very welcoming, cordial, and I hope the Grand Prix will be a unifying factor. […] If the decision has been made to keep the race on the calendar, it means that conditions are suitable for it, and from what I’ve seen so far, nothing suggests otherwise. »

The Paulist, who also confides that he is eager to get back on track, is also pleased to have finally completed a normal race in China: this is the first race of the year that went without any particular issues. During the weekend, things constantly improved: I was struggling with the car’s balance during the three free practice sessions, and then the situation suddenly improved in qualifying to the point where I could significantly close the gap with Fernando. Then, in the race, the car was even better, but I found myself in traffic too often and couldn’t fully capitalize on my strategy. It’s a shame, as it would have been nice to finally erase that horrible zero in the championship standings.

The Brazilian, who aims to finish among the top ten on Sunday, acknowledges, however, that on paper, the track characteristics don’t really seem to suit the F2012 but believes it will be important to make the best possible use of the tires, which will be the key to success here and on some other tracks as well.

Alonso hopes to spend less time stuck in traffic during the race than last Sunday: « It was absolutely frustrating not to be able to have a single clear lap because my pace, at least at certain points in the race, was not bad at all. »

But for now, the Spaniard can only be content with appreciating the fact that the championship is open and that many teams can aspire to victory, but he hopes that Ferrari will take a step forward as soon as possible: I have faith in the team and I know that everyone in Maranello is giving everything they have so we can achieve this goal.

Moreover, for Stefano Domenicali, who returned to Maranello with Pat Fry during the week, the real match these days is the one happening in Maranello where everyone is pushing hard to try to find every tenth of a second available in terms of performance in every area. We will have some new developments at Mugello, but we will mainly wait until the last few days before the Spanish Grand Prix to introduce the latest evolutions. I am sure our rivals will do the same, so it will be an opportunity to show who is smarter than the others and has done a better job.