Fernando Alonso: “I simply come and do my job, but it’s not fun to drive with different tools than the rest. I don’t enjoy it. Next year we have to close the gap and be in a more competitive environment”

Fernando Alonso gave a exhibition of resilience and hunger this weekend at the Brazilian GP. One more.

After a long and hard season, competing with many different types of engine problems and a huge lack of power on the straight which causes him to lose a lot of time per lap on each circuit just in acceleration, The Asturian once again maximized the performance of his car already juggling in Interlagos, taking advantage of the difficult track conditions to make a difference with their hands.

The driver from Oviedo had just finished 18th in the dry in Free Practice 3 at Interlagos. I lost more than a second just in the straight and acceleration areaswhere the pilot and his hands have nothing to do, since it only depends on accelerating. He lost 4 tenths only in the last sector, with a curve and the rest, pure top speed. So, It seemed very complicated that Fernando could be in the fight for the points in the upper part of the middle zone. But the rain gave him wings.

In classification, When the conditions were more complicated, in Q1, he even managed to take first after one of his turns. And he was very constant in his times, always getting into the top 5 when he finished his laps.

In Q2, he was the first to set the intermediates and he didn’t fail either. And he only needed to finish the job in Q3, since he could not optimize it due to having the wheels too cold on his first lap, and not having enough battery on his second lap. But he had already achieved a miracle.

In the dry, that Q3 was impossible. And perhaps, also Q2. He did it by working hard, as the data shows. On his lap to enter Q3 he was the driver who was able to push the accelerator to the floor the most, even more than Norris’ pole position.but despite this, it was far away in times due to its clear lack of power on the straight, which reduced its performance.

He started 8th in the race and did not throw in the towel despite the many positions he lost due to a whiplash from Bearman. The man from Oviedo found him on top of him and touched the rear of the Haas, damaging his front spoiler. But he continued fighting with intermediates. And there, he made a difference with the good performance of his car in curves and his talent in the wet. While many were harassed by the degradation of the rear tires on an increasingly dry track, as well as the front ones, the Asturian went on the attack, with better times than the Ferrari, surpassing Hamilton with a great exterior and pressing Leclerc.

But as soon as the track dried out, the usual weaknesses of the AMR26especially its engine, were more important. He had to compensate for his lack of power on the straight with his performance in the curve to stick as closely as possible to the Albon and force your mistake. The Thai wanted to return it, but Fernando made a perfect tie to achieve that position. And then, He was able to defend himself against a Pierre Gasly with much more top speed.

In fact, Gasly set the maximum speed of the race (352 km/h), compared to Fernando’s 336. And finally, again with intervals due to the rain in the last laps, he ended up putting pressure on the new world champion, Kimi Antonelli, crushing the dominating car with one of the worst cars on the grid, while trying to split.

A clear message

Therefore, the message that Fernando Alonso sent after the race was clear. Once again, he used the formula that he has been repeating in several races: he praised Newey’s chassis, something that is a very good sign for the aerodynamic concept that the British designer can create by 2027. But he reiterated the need to improve the power of the Honda engine. It is essential.

“We still have a lot of lack of speed on the straight and that is difficult to compensate. But we were fighting with the Ferraris at the beginning and even with the Mercedes at the end,” he highlighted.

“Taking into account what we lose on the straights, that means we probably could have been a second a lap faster than them (Mercedes).. So the car was phenomenal in the corners“Alonso said into the microphone of the official F1 television.

In the hands of Honda

And above all, he recalled that he competes in all races at a clear disadvantage due to the engine, although without naming it: “I don’t enjoy it. I just come here and do my job, but it’s not fun to ride with different tools. (to the rest). We have to work hard for next year, to close the gap and return to a competitive environment,” he explained. They need the engine to be much more powerful than the current one. And at the same time, their energy management performance and drivability are also up to the task. Aston Martin is in the hands of what Honda can do in 2027.

Commitment and resilience

And yes, as Alonso says, he does not enjoy driving this year, knowing that every time he goes out on the track he will do so with a car that loses tenths or a second per lap due to pure acceleration.

Imagine what it must be like to take long flights to the other part of the world, leaving the family at home, knowing that your car accelerates less than the rest. And do triplets of races, or at this end of the World Championship, 9 races in 11 weeks, almost without rest, with multiple trips, events and interviews, knowing that when you get in the car, the same thing will happen again.

And also, as he once again reminded everyone at Interlagos, knowing that he cannot take advantage of the enormous talent they have in their hands because he does not have a competitive engine.

And yet, as he recalled in Mexico, Fernando continues to work hard every day to be prepared when there is an opportunity, maximize the car’s performance and take advantage of the conditions and potential mistakes of rivals to achieve the best result. He did it again in Interlagos. It wasn’t enough. He was left without a well-deserved award. But his message was more than clear, on the track and off it.