(Motorsport-Total.com) – For Fernando Alonso, there was a double reason to celebrate in Suzuka: shortly after the birth of his first child, the 44-year-old Spaniard achieved his first finish at the Japanese Grand Prix (race report) with the still problem-plagued Aston Martin AMR26.
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“We went to Australia and were 100 percent sure that we wouldn’t finish the race,” Alonso recalls. “The following week in China, we were 95 percent convinced that we wouldn’t make it. And now, in the third race, we actually did it.”
“Finishing the race in Suzuka shows clear progress for the team, and that is a strong positive signal that we should take away from the weekend. We will now analyze the data from Silverstone and Sakura and continue to drive development forward to compete in Miami with a better understanding.”
Because despite all the joy over finishing, there is also a drop of bitterness: even newcomer Cadillac is now faster than Aston Martin. “It’s not the pace we want,” Alonso clarifies after his 18th place in Suzuka.
Fernando Alonso: “Honda is working really hard”
“But there is progress, and the team is continuously working to improve further,” adds the Spaniard, for whom the first finish of the year in Japan is “hopefully the first step for everyone to promote both, constant improvement.”
Honda is currently working “really hard,” Alonso adds. “Since Australia, we have been in constant conversation. I know that this was a special race for Honda. We wanted to do our best. Unfortunately, the best was only that we finished the race.”
“But I think it already shows that we are committed to supporting them and being close to them,” says the Spaniard, who knows about the current situation for Aston Martin and engine partner Honda: “It’s a difficult time for everyone. But we are a team and we will get better together.”
Meanwhile, a daring strategy in the race did not pay off: the team switched to hard tires at the start of the safety car phase, but switched back to medium tires just two laps later. “Yes, a bit of practice for the guys at the pit stops,” Alonso smiles.
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Water pressure problems for Stroll
Meanwhile, teammate Lance Stroll was also unable to finish the third race of the year due to technical problems. “We still have to investigate that, but it looks like a problem with the water pressure in the internal combustion engine,” the Canadian explains.
“Until then, I had a great race and had to defend against Fernando,” Stroll reports. “But it’s clear that we still have a lot of work ahead of us and need to become significantly faster. We know our problems and have to address them as quickly as possible.”
Mike Krack also confirms this: “We have shown that reliability is improving, but the problem with the water pressure on the internal combustion engine of Lance’s car shows that there is still a lot of work ahead of us,” the Luxembourg native admits.
A first step, but there is still potential
“It is also clear that the performance of our overall package is still far from what it should be, and we have to work hard on improvements.” Nevertheless, Alonso’s result was an “important moment” for the team, according to Krack.
“The goal today was to complete the race distance, which we achieved with Fernando in 18th place,” recalls the Trackside Engineering Officer. “This is an important moment for the team and our technical partner Honda at their home race.”
Honda has made “a good first step in terms of reliability” together with Aston Martin, says Honda chief engineer Shintaro Orihara. “In recent weeks, we have worked intensively with the team on improvements in this area.”
“In addition, we have increased engine performance and optimized our energy management strategy,” the Japanese engineer reveals. “By finishing the race with Fernando, we have collected a lot of data that will provide us with further insights for our future development.”
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