Alonso asks McLaren to improve their level
Once again finishing in the points with his seventh place, the Spanish driver implores his team to make the necessary efforts to accelerate the car's progression.
Fernando Alonso is a clear-sighted man. Beyond his team’s double scoring in the points, the double world champion knows very well that both Red Bull drivers and Kimi Räikkönen had to retire before the end of the Bahrain Grand Prix. When questioned by journalists, the driver made this observation: “Fifth in Australia, seventh here, it’s not bad. But we need to step up our level because it’s not enough at the moment. Lately, we’ve been getting good race results, but we need to take it up a notch.”
The heart of the criticisms of the Spanish driver actually lies in his qualifying performance. Fernando Alonso did not appreciate being eliminated in Q2, in thirteenth place.
« The level in qualifications was insufficient, our positions on the starting grid compromised our chances of achieving a very good result. During the race, we also lacked the pace to challenge Nico (editor’s note: Hülkenberg) or the Haas (of Magnussen). The weekend was saved at the last moment by our double entry into the points, but we need to find more pace because the race result is purely coincidental. » specified the Spaniard.
Seventh at the finish, Alonso was thus beaten fair and square by Gasly’s Toro Rosso, Magnussen’s Haas, and Hülkenberg’s Renault. It’s frustrating when the goal is to quickly become the fourth strongest team on the grid: « We weren’t fast enough during qualifying. We need to learn to avoid repeating such a performance. But we know that the potential is there. We must ensure to fix the flaws as quickly as possible. New developments are coming and they will certainly improve the car. »
Despite the criticism, Alonso will nonetheless arrive as the fourth driver in the overall standings with 16 points. In the constructors’ championship, McLaren occupies third place behind Ferrari and Mercedes but two points ahead of Red Bull. However, they will have to fight starting in China to maintain these strong positions.
Súper puntos en un fin de semana difícil en cuanto a competitividad. Otra carrera con doble puntuación para el equipo! 👏🏻👏🏻 Gracias Bahrain
Great points today in a tough weekend for us. Again both cars in the points for the team!! 👏🏻👏🏻 Thank you Bahrain! #mclaren #f1 pic.twitter.com/rolxhtByhy
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) April 8, 2018
The beautiful comeback of Stoffel Vandoorne
In the satisfaction department, the team can savor the eighth place of the Belgian driver, who was struggling in the first few kilometers after experiencing a lot of wheel spinning. Qualified fourteenth, the 2016 GP2 champion was last at the exit of the first corner!
« After the start, I didn’t think this result was possible » said the main person concerned. « We know that our race pace is stronger than in qualifying, this Grand Prix proved it. I made some good overtakes towards the first corner. » Stoffel Vandoorne honored the Bahrain Grand Prix, where he scored his first career points in 2016. The roadmap is set for Woking.
« It was an incredible race but we still need to work on understanding how different our pace is between qualifying and the race. I’m sure the results of our efforts will be visible soon. » concluded the Belgian
The final word on today’s #BahrainGP, courtesy of @svandoorne. 🎙 pic.twitter.com/aexiXuDym0
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) 8 avril 2018
