Fernando Alonso was relieved after a 16th place in Formula 1 qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix, avoiding a sixth consecutive back row start.
Since the season began, Aston Martin has been on the back foot, with vibrations in the car and engine issues that have seen its cars occupy the back of the field almost exclusively.
However, its results have been better in Hungary, and, with a near-entirely new car, Alonso made it through to Q2 and qualified 16th, the first time the Silverstone-based squad has made it out of Q1.
Reflecting on the upgrades after qualifying, Alonso said: “I think when you bring a nearly new car, you always believe that it is important to have the correlation right and to deliver what you expect to deliver.
“So, even if it’s what we expected, I think it was important to have it and not have a nasty surprise.”
Still progress to be made
Despite the changes and the progress made, Alonso recognised that there are still steps to be taken until the package is working at its best.
“We’re still not on top of the package. Now, in qualifying, we relearn something again on the balance of the car. If we have another session, I think we will change the setup again, and we’ll go with a different setup.
“So, I think it’s still early days, and I think there is more potential to unlock in the car, but it’s normal when you have such a big package. Unfortunately, we lost one car yesterday in the three practises as well, so we’re still down on experience on these parts.”
Alonso also noted that while the upgrades have brought improvements and increased the performance, the actual handling of the car has remained the same.
“I think more or less it stays the same. The way the car drives, we just gain load and overall grip in the corners.”
He said that the only benefit in handling terms is the consistency of drive. Alonso told the media the car was more ‘forgiving’.
“Maybe a little bit more consistent to drive. So, corner by corner, an entry, mid and exit of the corner. The car is a little bit more forgiving, so it’s a little bit easier to drive. The previous car we had, I think it was trickier to drive.”
A needed boost for the team
The Spaniard was honest that Aston Martin needed this bump in performance and the correlation between upgrades and on-track results. Alonso said it’s a relief to know they are heading in the right direction.
“I think it was important.” He admitted, “It was important for everyone in the team. It has been a tough period in both factories, having the deficit that we had in terms of performance in the first half of the year.
“This package, obviously, didn’t change many positions, but it changed a lot, I think, the momentum of everyone in the factory. It’s not anymore that we are chasing something that we don’t know.
“We know exactly what we are looking for, and we know exactly the targets for the next package or the targets for next year. So, that’s, I think, for me the biggest change of this weekend.”
Though good qualifying results are promising, what both Aston Martin and Alonso will be looking for a better result in the race than they’ve had in recent rounds.
READ MORE: Lando Norris details ‘breaking’ Hungaroring tarmac causing F1 ‘lottery’
Discussion about this post