As the curtains fell on the Qualifying session for Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Aston Martin fans were sure to go a bit pale. After three blockbuster races last month, the Silverstone team seemingly fell back into the pecking order. Fernando Alonso could only manage sixth and was a second off the pole. On the other hand, his teammate, Lance Stroll could only manage ninth. But how could a team that was challenging dominantly for podiums earlier in the season fall back? Has reality finally caught up with Aston Martin?
Fans of the Spaniard and the British team would’ve had their head in their hand post qualifying. That being said, new information has come to light that will have the fans taking a huge sigh of relief. It appears that both the AMR23 cars were suffering from a technical issue and it wasn’t an out-and-out pace deficit that slid them back into the clutches of the bottom half of the pack.
⚠️ | Neither Aston Martin driver had DRS in Q3 – the issue from Free Practice returned.
They were losing about 10 kp/h on the main straight.
[@AlbertFabrega]— formularacers (@formularacers_) April 28, 2023
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During the sole Free-Practice session, Alonso came onto the radio to complain about his DRS not opening. A problem was confirmed, and he was promptly wheeled back into the pits. As it turns out, the mechanics weren’t able to completely fix the issue.
Fans react as Fernando Alonso & Aston Martin’s troubling lack of pace explained
This news should come as a huge relief for the fans of the British team. But it wasn’t happy either. Many fans even decided to troll the team. And as soon as this information came out, fans rushed to the social media website, Twitter, to share their reactions. One fan even commented, “Prime time Aston Martin, this team is gonna finish me.”
Let’s take a look at just a few of the fan reactions.
the drs today: https://t.co/jfzTVx91zW pic.twitter.com/nBj43nfOwR
— Anna ⁵ ❄Danke Seb (@anna_sv5) April 28, 2023
Explains their quali position https://t.co/RYO3ceRdey
— Imade (@mr_imade) April 28, 2023
No wonder they looked so slow on the main straight 🤦🏻♂️ https://t.co/GnmFRptIL5
— Soman Pothuvāl 🇲🇾 (@somanpothuval7) April 28, 2023
Meanwhile, fans were also quick to troll Mercedes. 7x champion, Lewis Hamilton pipped Alonso in terms of lap time. At the time, it was supposed as an outright pace differential. However, it would appear that the Silver Arrows are still quite a way behind the Aston Martin.
Oh hell naw… https://t.co/2lPMc0ycd5 pic.twitter.com/RMXTueZapU
— TeflonCaesar (@blcvesvr_) April 28, 2023
But Mercedes wasn’t the only team that was being trolled. Even Aston Martin faced the brunt of it!
Prime time Aston Martin, this team is gonna finish me 😫😫😫 https://t.co/y6KHX4aq0K
— Siz. (@KAWS_F1) April 28, 2023
They're finally back https://t.co/aQ3Y8zPc8A
— Seth | 🏎 | #DankeSeb (@SethF1Fan) April 28, 2023
ahh that's the Aston Martin I know https://t.co/xmFI5loqLU
— ナイク #AlwaysBelieveInSeb♡ (@NaikSV5) April 28, 2023
Other than that, Aston Martin still has a clearly fast car, as things stand.
Alonso stuck it in P6 wtf https://t.co/M5OrvhtIZO
— #ThankYouSeb (@AMWahab185) April 28, 2023
WE COULD'VE JUMPED SAINZ? https://t.co/tgwKP68p2B pic.twitter.com/PLfuK1waXG
— w o o s h (@WOOSH_1806) April 28, 2023
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WATCH THIS STORY: Bromance moments between Max Verstappen & Lewis Hamilton
— Ramiz #LaleOrtaİSTİFA (@RamizGalaSK) April 28, 2023
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Will Aston Martin and Fernando Alonso rectify their DRS gremlins by the time the Sprint Shootout starts tomorrow?