Fernando Alonso isn’t expecting major gains in Spain after admitting his F2012 wouldn’t feature any ‘major upgrades’.
Ferrari are set to introduce their new exhaust layout this weekend at the first race following the Mugello test, however the revised solution isn’t as radical as some of those seen up and down the grid, with the Italian outfit opting for a conservative layout to help them understand the cars issues.
Alonso admits the car is similar to that seen in the opening four races but with some more minor updates.
“Our car is not really very different to before,” he wrote in his diary. “We don’t have big improvements although we do have some new parts.
“At Mugello during the test we mainly worked on trying different set-ups and other things we were not able to work on during pre-season testing, so it was a case of completing our winter work. Some of the things we tried in Mugello worked well, others less so.”
The Spaniard says this is the first step of many, and whilst optimistic for his home race, he understands the need to continue improving the car as their rivals do so too.
“We are definitely better prepared now than we were before Australia. We have some new aero parts and other updates, but we will have to wait and see where we are after the race.
“Because we are Ferrari, there seem to be a lot of expectations, but the other teams have also developed their cars. What we have here in Barcelona is not the last step and we must continue to improve our performance for qualifying and the race in Monaco, in Canada and the following races.
“This is just the first step of many and if it is not enough, then we must work harder for Monaco and be even more aggressive in our approach. We will never give up in May, after just four races!”
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