Sergio Perez says that Fernando Alonso’s session-topping FP2 lap time confirms Aston Martin’s strong pace for the 2023 Formula 1 season.
Alonso beat Perez and Verstappen to the top spot in the second practice session, having split the Red Bull duo earlier in the day.
The AMR23 car attracted attention at pre-season testing for the strong pace it appeared to have at the hands of Alonso, with team-mate Lance Stroll ruled out due to a wrist injury.
The 42-year-old once again showcased the car’s speed on Friday in Bahrain, but is hesitant to label it as a front-runner in the 2023 F1 field.
Perez says that the pace of the car was no surprise to Red Bull.
“We knew from testing already, they were going to be very strong, they were going to be very competitive,” Perez said.
“No surprises to be honest. I think it just confirms how strong they are.”
Perez’s team-mate Max Verstappen concurred that the Silverstone-based squad is a major player on the grid.
“Yeah [they are] quick,” he said. “But you could see that in testing that they were very competitive. They had a great day.
“For us still a bit of work to do. We know we have a very competitive car, it’s just now putting all the pieces together.”
Verstappen endured a difficult day, as he struggled with handling issues during the first practice session that left him unhappy.
However, he says the balance returned to a more favourable condition as FP2 wore on.
“[It was a] difficult start of the day,” Verstappen said. “FP1 was really bad.
“[I] couldn’t get a balance, which was a bit odd, because in testing whatever we tried… OK, some things were maybe not amazing, but not that far out.
“So a few things to understand, even the start of FP2 was a bit difficult but then for the final run, even though not having a good reference and confidence in the car, the lap was not too bad in the short run.
“Also the car felt a bit more connected. The long run, with all the changes we made, I was quite surprised with the pace we had.
“Overall the car is not too bad in the long run. Just need to find my rhythm again with the car and just the way the car is driving from short run to the long run.”
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