Despite Making Red Bull Sweat, Wily Old Fernando Alonso Keeps Aston Martin’s Goals Under Wraps: “I Don’t Know..”

The two practice sessions of the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix saw a glimpse of Fernando Alonso from his prime days. The sessions on Friday concluded with the Aston Martin driver in the pole position. It raised multiple eyebrows, and anticipation skyrocketed instantly. With a few hours to go before the qualifications, Alonso, who already sweated the defending champions, Red Bull, opened up on the team’s strategy for the upcoming season. However, he cleverly evaded the goal of the media as a whole.

Speaking to the media after the practice sessions, Alonso shared the team’s objectives for this season and the next. With huge expectations building on the Silverstone-based team, the Spanish driver was the man of the moment after his surreal practice performance. When asked if the team is looking for pole positions on Saturday, Alonso told Sky Sports F1, “No, no, no – not at all.”

The former Ferrari driver went on in a report published by F1, “I’m not thinking that high, to be honest. Actually, I don’t know exactly what position will be a good one for us. After testing, we were thinking to be in Q3 with both cars, score as many points as possible in these first couple of races, try not to make mistakes – it’s very easy to make a mistake.”

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Fernando Alonso finished Friday’s qualification on top with 1:30.907 on the timesheet. This was 0.169 seconds faster than defending champion Max Verstappen, who was stunned by Alonso, and 0.171 seconds faster than Sergio Perez. Lance Stroll, Alonso’s teammate, also finished the session in a much improved P6.

Aston Martin is looking into long-term objectives, says Fernando Alonso

The Aston Martin star driver also opened up on the team’s objectives from the season 2023 and beyond. It will be statistically hard to compete with the likes of Red Bull, Ferrari, or Mercedes. However, the Spanish driver believes it can be done, but the time is not now.

Speaking to the media, Alonso said, “It’s a completely new team, new procedures, the team as well, so we have to be with the feet on the ground. The target has to be fighting for the championship, but in the long-term – I don’t think in this year, yet.”

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Admittedly, for the last few years, Aston Martin is not performing as per the standards earlier set by the team. The team that once fought for podiums reduced to a plodder in the last few seasons. However, things are looking different for the Silverstone-based team this season. It’ll be interesting to see how much they improved during the winter once the Bahrain Grand Prix race gets underway on Sunday.