Fernando Alonso says Aston Martin made normal progress over the off-season from the end of 2022, and hailed the impact of their development in the second half of that season.
Alonso joined the team at the start of 2023 after they recorded back-to-back seventh-place finishes in the Formula 1 constructors’ championship.
But, this season he has taken six podiums and is third in the F1 drivers’ championship ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix.
“When I tested in Abu Dhabi I felt the car was good and it was competitive,” Alonso told the media.
“I think the performance of the Aston and the Alpine in the last race that I was driving in was very similar. So when I jumped in that car, I felt okay, I think they made a lot of progress during the year.”
“So that’s why when we think of Aston last year, we may think of the struggles at the beginning, mid-season, but I think at the end of the year they had a reasonable car.
“So the step over winter was a normal progress that they followed through the year.”
Alonso relishing Austrian battle with Mercedes
Ahead of the 2022 Hungarian GP, Aston Martin were ninth in the contractors’ championship with just 20 points, but 12 months later they sit third and just 22 points behind second-placed Mercedes.
“That’s definitely more interesting for us,” Alonso added. “I think Red Bull is in their own league at the moment this year. So for us, it is important to score points with both cars and every weekend.
“I’m trying to keep up the fight with Mercedes and Ferrari which obviously is still you know, hard to believe for us, you know that we are in this battle.
“When we started the season in Bahrain, we were definitely not expecting to be up there. And now we are just enjoying every weekend and it’s good to be in this battle.
Where is the next F1 2023 race?
With the F1 circus finished at Silverstone, we move on to the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix which will be held at the Hungaroring, Budapest over the weekend of July 21-23.
