The analysis of Fernando Alonso’s career: “There are circumstances that help you if you manage to understand and read them there”
If you give him a winning car, he will fight to win. He’s not going to waste it. And while you wait for that to come at some point, Fernando Alonso, Whenever he can, he reminds Adrian Newey. Faced with any possible option, no matter how difficult it may seem, the Spaniard manages to get the most out of his car and take advantage of all the possible elements of the race to maximize the result of his car. And he made it clear again in Sepang.
On Sunday, the Asturian made a masterful comeback from behind to 8th place with the least powerful engine. Once again, he showed that if Adrian Newey and Honda give him a winning car and engine, he will not fail.
Fernando’s career was the clear example of what Alonso is: driving, resistance, resilience, never throwing in the towel when it seems that everything is against him, speed and a lot, a lot of intelligence with his way of reading the race at all times.
Overtaking Hamilton in the wet and mentality
The initial wrong choice of tires, with dry rubber on an asphalt that was still too wet and drying slowly, delayed him to the last places.
But even there he once again showed his hands and speed in very difficult conditions against a Lewis Hamilton who was using soft rubber, better in such delicate conditions than the average one that Alonso was using.
In this complicated context, Fernando surpassed the Englishman despite the fact that Lewis was driving a Ferrari, a better car and with a better engine. And when the cars are the same, the number of titles does not count. And then he knew how to be patient when everything seemed lost. He knew that the initial mistake of the tires had already been made and he had to resist, survive on a complicated track. If he waited on the track, if he resisted, a safety car could regroup the cars. And it happened.
“I knew I had to be there, try to be on the lead lap and wait for a safety car, which in the end came”argument. “In these races there is always a ‘safety car’. When the track is delicate, some are on dry tyres, others are on intermediates, there will always be some incident, something will always happen and everything regroups at some point in the race,” he expressed after the event. And it happened.
I knew that in these races there is always a ‘safety car’. When the track is delicate there will always be some incident, something will always happen and everything will regroup at some point in the race.
Overtaking during braking
Due to pure pace and race execution, without errors in a car that on Saturday highlighted that it was still difficult to drive, and in which it also suffered oversteer in the race, as recognized in ‘AS’, He gained positions, also with great overtakes under braking. That oversteer did not prevent him from continuing to attack, with several overtakes in turn 4.
First, he was able to surpass Pérez. He tried inside turn 1. It seemed that the position was his, but the better acceleration of the Ferrari engine once again left ‘Checo’ ahead. But he insisted. He hit the slipstream and passed him again when braking in 1st gear.
He then passed teammate Stroll into Turn 4. Lance made it easy, leaving room for a Fernando who had more pace with a maneuver in which it was important that both of them not waste time in the little train of cars in which they were riding.
The next station was Ocon. Again, same formula: he stuck to him and passed him under braking in Turn 4.
Genail maneuvers against Lindblad
And then, the overtaking came to Lindblad. He tried several times, but the young pilot Racing Bulls He defended himself very well. But Fernando did not give up and achieved it with a masterful loop in turns 1 and 2, perfect.
That advance was cooked over a slow fire. He prepared on the inside of room one to go to the outside of room two. It seemed that Arvid had that position because he had the inside of turn 2, but there, Fernando anticipated what was going to happen: he knew what Arvid was going to do and intelligently opened its route to the outside to stop the car earlier with the aim of crossing on the inside and overtaking it with better traction. Sensational.
He curled the loop: he held the champion Norris behind for mischief
And the end of the race was to curl the loop. Russell’s abandonment and a mistake by Norris left him 8th. He had 3 laps to defend himself from the current champion, and he did it with a much worse car and a much less powerful engine on the straight. He pulled cunning. He knew that Norris had used up his battery, he charged his own and in the final restart, he managed that battery to defend himself on the straights. And yes, he stopped the champion. Give him a winning car. He’s going to take advantage of it. What a lesson in piloting and endurance. Pure Fernando Alonso.
I had the battery fully charged for two laps and was using it on the straights.
“I think when you get into Lando (Norris) type trouble with Nico (Hülkenberg), that they finish the drums… I spent two laps carrying it. I had the battery fully charged for two laps and I was using it on the straights.”, said Fernando, who was intelligent.
“I think they are also circumstances that help you or don’t help you if you manage to understand and read them in the race.” He read them and took advantage of them. If they give him a winning car, he will take advantage of it. It was clear with his lesson in piloting and resistance. Fernando Alonso in its purest form.
